Her
by Laredo Grissom
Summary: What will Grissom do when he must juggle two ladies in his life? Complete all 20
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer:  I do not make any money off of my stories about CSI.

A/N:  Here is an oldie but goody.  At least it's one of my favorites.  I wanted to post this again for those who hadn't been able to read it before or who have not read it at my site.               

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            Sara Sidle came into the Crime Lab with determination written all over her face.  _I have to do this.  I can't take it anymore. _ She reached Gil Grissom's office door and leaned against the doorframe.  He didn't see her.  _So how do I start?  She knew he was going to take it the wrong way.  "Hey, Grissom, got a moment?" _

            Grissom looked up at her.  Sara had her arms folded in front of her chest and her right hand held a piece of paper.  "Actually, I have more than one.  What's up?"  Sara walked in to his office and shut the door.  _Well this must be important._  He thought as she walked over and handed him the piece of paper she was holding and then she sat down with a slowness that betrayed her feelings of unease.

            Grissom's head was spinning.  He couldn't believe what he was looking at, again, although this time she entered "personal reasons" on her Leave of Absence.  He looked up at her and asked.  "Sara… I thought we had this worked out.  I thought things were better.  What's wrong this time?"

            Sara could read the misunderstanding and hurt in his eyes.  She smiled to try and reassure him.  "Grissom, everything here, at work, is okay.  It's not like last time, honest.  I…" She hesitated to gather her thoughts.  "I have something, as I stated, a personal thing that I need to take care of and I don't know how long it will take.  I thought of taking some vacation time instead but I don't think it will be long enough."

            "Is there anything I can help with?"  Grissom wasn't sure if he should have asked that but this was Sara and even though he didn't show her his feelings, he at least wanted her to feel that he was there for her.

            "No…I…uh…just need to go out of town for awhile and take care of this."  She stumbled through it.  If she didn't get out of there soon she was going to tell him everything.

            "I know I'm not the first person anyone goes to about their problems but if there is anything you need to talk about I'm here for you.  You know that don't you?"  He could see storms were brewing in her eyes.  She nodded that she understood.  _Maybe if I say it again she'll talk to me.  "I mean it you know, you can trust me, no matter what it is, I won't think of you any differently.  I'm here just to listen if you want."_

            More than anything, Sara wished she could believe that because right now she wanted to tell him what she was leaving for but the memory of their conversation those four years ago came back in a rush.  She couldn't risk it, not yet at least. She stood up and walked over to the door and put her hand on the knob then turned back around to face him.  "Grissom, I need to leave first thing in the morning.  The leave would start immediately, will you sign it?"

            He nodded and did just that.  She waited for him to finish and look back up at her. When he did she said, "Thank you."  Then she turned back to the door and walked out.

            He sat there in a daze and wondered what it was she couldn't talk to him about.  

            At that moment, Catherine popped her head in and saw him staring off into space.  _Now what did Sara do this time?_  She saw Sara leave and she had also seen the tears that had built up in her eyes as she left.  "Hey, Gris, what's going on?  I just saw Sara leave and she looked like she was about to start crying.  Is something wrong?"

            He stood up and handed her the paper that Sara had just given him.  She read it and looked back at him startled.  "You've got to be kidding.  Again?  Things seemed to be going so well between you two."

            "She said it's nothing like before but that it was personal stuff that she had to take care of.  She didn't know how long it would take, but I… I don't know.  I just get this feeling that there is more to it than that especially now that you said she looked like she was going to start crying."  He knew Catherine thought he hadn't tried to talk to her about it.  "I did try to tell her she could talk to me, you know, but she just said she had to go."

"I could try and talk to her if you want."  Catherine felt that her friendship with Sara had reached a new level and now might be a good time for some girl bonding.

            "No."  Grissom sighed heavily.  "We have work to do and since she won't be here tonight we're short-handed.  Give me a couple of minutes and I'll meet you in the briefing room."

            "Okay, I'll gather up the boys."  Catherine left it at that but knew that when she got a chance, Sara Sidle was going to have a visitor later that night.


	2. Chapter 2

            Sara arrived home to suitcases strewn over the living room floor and clothes laid out on the couch and chair.  Part of her packing was done but she also needed to do some cleaning.  She didn't want to come back to a messed up apartment.  She would be making a big enough mess when she returned. 

            Two hours later, Sara was still cleaning when someone knocked on her door.  _Oh, please tell me it's not him.  I can't hold off telling him if it is._ She reached the door and looked out the peephole to see the strawberry blonde she now considered her friend.  She opened the door. "Hey, Catherine."  Sara could see by the look on Catherine's face that she wasn't happy about being there.  "Is something wrong?"

            "I could ask the same of you.  Can I come in?"  Catherine's tone of voice let Sara know that the look on Catherine's face was for real.  Sara opened the door wide so that Catherine could enter.  Catherine walked in to the living room and saw the suitcases that Sara had packed and that now sat against the couch on the floor.  "So you want to explain what is going on?  You have Grissom so riled up he couldn't work the crime scene tonight.  He's worried and confused.  Why are you doing this again?"

            "Catherine, this isn't like before, I just need to deal with some stuff and need to take the time off."  Sara realized what Catherine's last comment was.  "Is… Is he that bad?  He really couldn't work the crime scene?"  Grissom never let anything bother him that much especially at a crime scene.

            "Yeah, he is. He almost touched evidence without any gloves.  I made him go back to the lab and do paperwork."  Catherine had raised her voice slightly.  "What the hell is going on between you two?"

            "Nothing is going on." Sara sighed.  She knew Catherine was protective of Grissom and she wasn't about to let her think that she was going to hurt him.

            "Well, Sara, maybe that's the problem."  Catherine spurted out as she dumped her purse on the coffee table.

            "What's that supposed to mean?"  That last comment startled her.  Sara wasn't sure where Catherine came up with it.

            "Exactly what it sounds like.  If you two would just admit your feelings for each other maybe then you could actually talk and quit doing this… this… little flirting dance you both seem to do."  Catherine folded her arms against her chest and started tapping a foot like a mother scolding a child.

            "You don't know what you're talking about."  Sara didn't want to think where Catherine was headed with her comment.

            "Don't I?"  They both stood there and stared each other down.  "Sara, at least talk to me.  That way maybe I can tell Grissom it's not a big deal and he can still function at work.  With you leaving, we can't afford not to have him at his normal level."

            Sara was biting on her lower lip again and she turned and walked into the kitchen.  Catherine followed.  "I'm not leaving permanently.  I just know I am going to need more time off than a couple of weeks."

            "Why?  Are you going out of town?  If you aren't looking for another job, why can't you take the time off here?"

            Sara sighed with frustration.  She turned around and looked at Catherine.  She gave in. "I'm going to bring my daughter to live with me."

            Catherine shook her head as if trying to clear out her ears.  "Excuse me! Your what?"

            "My daughter."

            "You have a daughter?" Catherine never pictured Sara as a maternal type. "How old is she?"

            "She's only three years old."  Sara started to cry.  "She's been without me for the last year and a half and I am afraid she won't know me anymore.  I visit her when I can, when I have a couple days off together but you know as well as I do that it doesn't happen often enough.  I need her here with me."  Catherine closed the space between them and pulled her into a hug.

            They walked into the living room and sat on the couch.  "Is she with her father?"

            "No, her father doesn't know about her.  He… He doesn't want children so I didn't tell him."

            Catherine thought that Grissom knew a lot about Sara but wondered if he knew about her having a daughter.  "Does Grissom know about her?"

            Sara shook her head and looked down at her hands in her lap.  "I couldn't tell him."  She whispered it and then looked up at Catherine to see if she understood.

            Catherine understood immediately.  "Grissom is the father?" Sara nodded while her right hand swiped the tears off of her face.  "Sara, why do you think he doesn't want children?"

            "He said so.  I called him when I found out I was pregnant.  You and Lindsay were at his place.  I could hear the tantrum Lindsay was throwing in the background.  Grissom was a little upset and he made the comment that he was glad he decided to never have any children.  That's when I decided not to tell him."

            "Oh, Sara, he loves Lindsay, it was just a bad day.  People say stuff like that until they actually have a child of their own."  Catherine leaned over and pushed some hair off of Sara's face that had fallen forward and was sticking to her tears.  "You have to tell him and tell him exactly that."

            Sara sniffled and reached over for a tissue.  When she finished wiping her eyes and blowing her nose she asked Catherine.  "What do I do now?  How do I tell him that I have kept this from him for so long?  I don't think I can tell him face to face and see his anger at me for holding this from him.  And there isn't time; I'm leaving in a few hours."

            "I don't know… wait, why don't you write it, in a letter.  I'll give it to him and that way you can still leave on time."  Catherine was going to make sure this worked out right if it was the last thing she did.

            "Would you?"

            "Of course.  I have to get back but I'll come by in a couple of hours and pick it up.  When were you planning on leaving?"  Catherine reached over to the coffee table for her purse and then stood up.

            "Six." Sara stood up also.

            "Okay, I'll come by right before.  You just get some rest before you go though, okay, promise?"  Catherine and Sara walked to the door.  

            "Yeah, I will."  Catherine turned and gave Sara one last hug and then left.

            Sara dug around for some paper and a pen and slowly began her letter to Grissom to explain why she was leaving and at the same time, she hoped he would understand why she hadn't told him.


	3. Chapter 3

            Gil Grissom had left the lab and was about to get in his car to head home.  He thought back on hard this night had been.  The cases weren't what made it hard, the thought that Sara wasn't there had.  Lost in thought, he at first didn't hear Catherine calling to him as she ran up behind him.  He turned around and saw she had an envelope in her hand.

            "Gil, I wanted to catch you before you left.  Here."  She said this short of breath as she handed him the envelope.  He saw the handwriting on it and recognized it.  "When did she leave this?"

            "She didn't.  I picked it up.  But don't read it until you get home.  I mean it, only when you have gotten home.  Okay?"  

            "I told you not to interfere…"

            "Yeah, well I did, get over it.  You'll be glad I did.  I'll see you later."  She winked and walked off.

            Grissom got in his car, laid the envelope on the passenger seat and drove home.  He grabbed his stuff and went inside.  After he set his jacket and briefcase down, he headed toward the kitchen to make himself some breakfast and carried the letter with him into the kitchen.  In the middle of pulling out some items from the fridge, he stopped and considered the envelope on the counter and what it might contain.  He opened it and began reading.

_Gil,_

_            I know I left you in confusion yesterday and I'm sorry for it.  There was so much I wanted to tell you when we talked but I couldn't say what I should've said.  It's not something that is easy to talk about.  What I am about to tell you is probably one of the hardest things I have ever had to do but you have a right to know._

            He put the letter back down.  He wasn't sure if he wanted to read this…but he picked it back up and resumed where he left off.

_We have never talked about the night we shared together in _San Francisco__ during the Evans' case.  But I need to talk about it now, especially before I get back.  __

_I remember the night vividly.  It was the most wonderful night of my life and one that I will never forget. You taught me so much about loving and being loved.  Sometimes I'm sure it seems that I have forgotten it but it's always there in the back of my mind.  We both knew what we were doing and what we wanted._

_However, my leave of absence is because of that night.  It is absolutely necessary and is not something I am doing frivolously and I'm not looking for another job.  I enjoy working with you and the others._

_My reason for the leave pertains directly to the night we shared in Frisco._

            Grissom put the letter back down again.  He stood at the island in his kitchen and started to remember that night in Frisco.  He smiled.  It had been just what she had said, wonderful.  He also remembered when he called her up to come here and how he wondered if she wouldn't come because of regrets from that night.  He sighed and looked back at the letter then started reading again.

_After you left for Vegas, I called you a couple of months later. You had company, and I could hear them in the background.  You said that Catherine and Lindsay were over and that Lindsay was throwing a tantrum.  You also said how glad you were that you didn't have kids._

_            A couple of months… couple months._  Grissom started to feel a little lightheaded.  He didn't want to be right this time.  They hadn't used protection.  'I said I was glad I didn't have kids.'  He looked back down at the letter but didn't pick it up.  He found his stopping point and started to read again while he leaned on both arms as his hands gripped the island counter.

_It was at that point that I lost my courage to tell you why I had called.  We just talked awhile and that was it.  But, Gil, I find it's harder now to tell you then it was then.  Catherine came by to find out what's wrong and I told her.  She said I was wrong and that I should tell you, and she's right.  I don't want you to find out any other way than from me._

_You see, that day I called you four years ago; I had just found out that I was going to become a mother.  I was pregnant with your child.  I wanted to tell you and share it with you but I feared you would feel obligated or trapped.  And after what you said on the phone about Lindsay I couldn't say it.  So I made a rash decision to raise the baby on my own.  _

_It's been quite an experience.  My pregnancy was pretty rough.  I had a hard time with work because I was getting sick a lot.  No one guessed though because I didn't start to really show until my seventh month.  If it had been sooner they wouldn't have allowed me to keep working and at the time I really need to.  Finally, I did have to stop, and so for two months I was on paperwork detail, then when I reached my ninth month, I went on a six-month maternity leave._

_Gil, I don't know how you feel about all of this but I want you to know you have a daughter.  She's beautiful, and she has curly brown hair and her father's blue eyes.   She is wonderful.  She's bright and intelligent like her parents and she loves bugs.  Her whole room is filled with stuffed toys of bugs.  _

_I really miss her Gil.  She has been without me for over a year and a half and although I have visited when I can, especially when I would have two days off, which as you know have been far and few.  I feel that she's growing up too fast and won't know me anymore.  She's been living with a close friend and now I have made arrangements for her to come to Vegas and live with me again.  And so that is the reason why I am taking the leave of absence._

_I hope you understand why I have taken these actions.  I want you to know her but I also don't want you to feel obligated.  I have been pretty good as a single mother so far other than my absence this last year and a half.  If you want to be a part of her life I would be more than happy to share._

_By the time you have started reading this I will already be on my way.  If you want to talk to me about this I will have my cell phone with me but I am planning on being back in town in about two weeks._

_Gil, I don't know what else to say except I don't want you to feel like you have to do anything.  We made a mutual decision that night but I made the decision to keep her and if you don't want this, or to be a part of her life, then I want you to know I do understand and it won't change how I feel about you.  You have always been special to me, more than you realize, and as the father of my baby girl, I will always see you the way you were the night she was conceived._

_Love always,_

_Sara_

            He just stood there, staring at the letter on the counter.  Finally, he walked in a daze over to the phone and dialed.

            "Hello."

            "Catherine, it's Gil, umm, I need you here.  Can you come over?"

            "Already here, just open the door."

            He walked to the door and opened it.  Catherine stood there and tried to read his face but decided it was best not to even try.  He let her in and they sat down on the couch.  Grissom put his head in his hands.  "Gil, are you okay?  Do you want something to drink?"

            He just shook his head.  He finally looked up at her and choked out,  "I need to be more careful with the things I say."

            "Gil, don't, you didn't know."

            "Don't a lot of people say that until they actually have one of their own?  Even I know that."  He put his head back down in his hands leaning on his knees.  "How is it that we can read each other so well on a case but when it comes to… well us, our personal feelings, we get way off base?  When did she leave?"

            "At six and…"

            "Damn, I want to see her and talk to her and not over the phone…"

            "…I know who her friend is."

            Grissom almost got whiplash as he flipped his head back up. "You do?  How?"

            "I checked her phone records for the last week.  She made several calls to a Shannon Hamilton and I have her address as well.  You have a couple of days coming up this weekend, why don't you see how the weather is in San Francisco?"  She said the last with a wink.

            Grissom looked at Catherine like she had lost her mind.  He stood up and started to pace while he ran his hand through his hair.  "I can't do that, she didn't say she wanted me there just that I could call…"

            "Oh, please!  She wants you there.  She always wants you there, wherever she is… at all times.  Gil, she loves you.  And don't tell me you don't feel the same because we can all see it."

            "It's that obvious, huh?"

            "God yes.  Tell you what, why don't you get some rest and deal with the fact that you… are… a…. father; and I'll make you some breakfast for a change."


	4. Chapter 4

A/N:  Hee!  I'm lovin' the reviews.  It's so exciting to hear from people who haven't read this before and even more gratifying to hear from those who have.  Thank you!

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            Three days later, Grissom found himself waiting in his car on a street in San Francisco just down the street from a white one-story house, with a yard that had a fence surrounding it.  There was a small flower garden in front of the house and a couple of toys on the porch.  He had already went to the house and knocked on the door but no one was home.  He decided to wait and contemplate how to approach her when she got home.

            Two hours later, a car pulled up into the drive.  He saw Sara get out and walked to the trunk that she must have opened from the inside of the car.  Another woman, in the meantime, had gotten out of the passenger side and opened the back door.  He could see her unbuckling a child from a car seat in the back.  She picked up and took out of the car, a little girl.  Sara was right.  She is beautiful.  They talked for a moment and the little girl had laid her head on the other woman's shoulder and started sucking her thumb.  Then the other woman and the little girl went into the house.  Sara resumed her activities in the trunk.

_            Well, here I go.  Grissom got out and locked his car. The thought that he might scare her didn't even cross his mind as he walked up behind her.  He spoke softly, "Hello, Sara."_

            Sara thought she heard footsteps.  Why is Shannon coming back out?  I told her I would bring in the groceries, she thought, when she heard a male voice.  Nearly jumping out of her skin, she hit her head on the hood of the trunk.  She turned around so fast after recognizing the voice that she lost her balance and almost fell into the trunk.  Grissom reached out and grabbed her arms to steady her and pulled her back up so that she ended up against his chest.  He put his arms around her to steady her more.

            He chuckled as he said, "I'm sorry.  I didn't mean to scare you."

            Sara found her voice and shyly said, "Hi."  He stopped chuckling and said hello back to her in much the same way.

            "How…Why…What are you doing here?"

            He smiled at her stuttering. "I didn't think it appropriate to meet my daughter over the phone." 

            "Oh…How did you know where I…?"

            He made that look on his face that read, 'you really want to ask that question?'

            "Catherine?"

            "She looked at your phone records, even before you'd left."

            "Leave it to her."  She realized he was still holding her and it felt so good.  'Please don't let go.'

            "Can I see her?"  He realized he was still holding her and started to let go.

            "Please don't," she whimpered.

            He frowned.  She didn't want him to see their little girl? She saw in his eyes that he misunderstood and she clarified it for him. "Please don't let go."

            He smiled and hugged her even closer.  After a few minutes, he shifted away from her slightly so he could look at her.  "Can I?"

            She smiled up at him. "Yes, but later.  She was sleeping in the car and has probably gone back to sleep in her bed now."

            "Oh."  He felt disappointed.  "Well, I haven't gotten a room yet, so maybe I should go do that then come…"

            "No, you can stay here." Sara saw him eyeing the place and she said, "It's bigger than it looks and Shannon won't be staying.  She has her own apartment now."

            "This isn't hers?"

            "No, it's mine.  My aunt left it to me when she died.  Help me take in the groceries?"  He nodded and then they turned around, grabbed the bags out of the trunk and they walked into the house together.  

            When they entered, he saw the other woman coming down the hallway.  Sara introduced him to Shannon.  Shannon had seen them through the window and decided not to interfere when she saw that Sara knew him.  She had hoped it was Grissom.

            "I am going to head off.  I'll see you next Saturday, unless you need something.  If you do, just call."  Shannon gave Sara a hug, shook Grissom's hand and then grabbed her purse and left.

            Grissom took the groceries into the kitchen, which he found easily.  Sara followed behind with the bags she had been carrying and then dug through them to put the items away.  She sensed that she was now alone in the kitchen.  Sara looked over to the counter where Grissom had been sitting.  He had disappeared.  She walked back into the living room and saw that he wasn't there either.  And then it dawned on her where he went.


	5. Chapter 5

            He watched her put away the groceries and had the strongest urge to see 'her', his daughter, even though she was sleeping.  He walked down the hallway, as he knew it would lead him to her room.  He approached a door at the end of the hall that was slightly ajar.  He peeked inside and there she was.  He walked over to the small bed.  It was small to him but seemed so large compared to her.  'This isn't right is it?  Shouldn't she be in a crib?' He thought. 'But then what do I know, maybe she is old enough… but she looks so small.'  He reached down to move a curly tendril of hair that had fallen down over her eyes.

            Sara found him in the little nursery she had transformed out of the second bedroom.  He leaned over the bed and touched her face.  She walked over and put her hand in his.  Grissom felt the soft touch of her skin on his and stood back up.  He looked over at Sara who intently studied his face.  He appeared to her like a man who had just fallen in love.  They shared a smile and then they both looked back down at the sleeping princess.

            Sara gently tugged on his hand and took a step back.  He started to follow her out but stopped just inside the door and looked back at 'her'.  His heart ached for her to wake up.

            They walked down the hallway and into the living room.  Sara directed him over to the sofa and they sat down. Grissom could see tears forming in her eyes.  She knew he saw them but he didn't ask why.  She placed his arm over her shoulders and then laid her head on his chest.  They sat there like that for a while; no one spoke for neither of them knew what to say.

            That's how they were when Grissom woke up.  He thought he had heard a noise.  He looked down as he felt warmth surrounding him and remembered who it was he felt lying on his chest and exactly where he was.  Not that he actually forgot, because how could anyone forget something that felt this wonderful.  He smiled as he touched Sara's hair, softly running his fingers through it but the noise got his attention again and he realized it was coming from the kitchen.  He started to shift Sara a little so he could get up and investigate what it was.  He stopped instantly as he saw a movement and he thought, 'It's her! Man, I've got to find out what her name is, I can't believe that of all things, Sara has not told me yet.'  

            He saw her step over to a chair at the table with a box in both of her tiny hands.  She had barely placed the box on the table and then started to climb up on the chair.  'She's going to fall.'  He thought as he continued to shift Sara off gently and then got up and headed into the kitchen.  She had made it up onto the chair and knelt on it while she leaned against the table.  She had managed to open the box and pulled out a handful of crackers and placed them on the table then picked one up and took a bite.  

            Grissom noticed that the box looked like the one that Catherine's daughter, Lindsay, ate her animal crackers out of and remembered that Lindsay liked to have milk with hers.  He went over to the fridge, took out the milk and then searched the cupboards until he found the cups.  He took a small one out that appeared to have little ladybugs all over it.  He figured it must be for her and poured about a half a cup in it then walked over to the table and put it down in front of her.  

            She watched him set it down then reached over and grabbed it with both hands and looked in it.  She smiled as her face tilted up at him and said quietly, "Thank you."  Then she took a drink.  He was taken aback at what she said knowing she was only a little over three.  It would seem she learned some manners already.  She continued to watch him as he sat down across from her and then she said quietly. "Mommy seepin'."  He in turn said. "Yes she is.  Do you want me to wake her up?"  "Nope."  And she went back to eating her crackers and drinking her milk.  'She is so beautiful,' he thought, 'just like her mother.'

            When she finished her milk, she grabbed the box of crackers, pushed down the plastic bag inside and then closed the box.  She scooted off of her chair, reached up and grabbed the box and then walked back into the kitchen.  After opening a cupboard on the bottom near the fridge, she put the box in it then closed the cupboard.  She walked back to the table, grabbed her cup and walked back into the kitchen, opened the cupboard under the sink and placed one hand on the top of the counter, then stepped up onto the cupboard flooring and while she held herself up, she dropped her cup into the sink.  She then proceeded to step down and let go of the counter. She shut the cupboard door and walked over to the table and pushed the chair she had previously occupied back into the table.  

She stood and stared at Grissom as she put her thumb in her mouth.  While she still had her thumb in her mouth, she smiled and walked over to him and tugged on his hand.  He stood up and she pulled on his hand until they reached the recliner.  When he sat down, she tried unsuccessfully to climb into his lap so he leaned over and picked her up and sat her on his leg.  She laid down against his chest and promptly put her thumb back in her mouth and closed her eyes.  

            Grissom's heart almost exploded.

            He reached up with his other hand and placed it on her head and started fingering her tendrils of hair.  While he did this, a pair of brown eyes watched him.  He finally dosed off again with his daughter who he still didn't know the name of.

            Sara smiled as she considered what she had seen.  'This can't be happening.'  She never imagined in her wildest dreams that he would react to her in this way.  She waited until they were asleep then moved off of the sofa and quietly tiptoed into the kitchen and made her way over to the sink.  She looked down to see the cup and smiled as she looked out the kitchen window.  She sighed contentedly then considered making preparations for dinner.  

            A little later, as she closed the door on the stove and stood back up, she felt a presence behind her.  She turned and caught Grissom red-handed as he tried to quietly walk up behind her with his arms and hands outstretched like he intended to grab her around the waist.  Her movement  startled him and he quickly dropped his hands, stepped back to lean against the counter, folded his arms across his chest and just smiled at her innocently.

            Sara however frowned as she looked around him not seeing what she searched for.  "Where is she?"

            He cleared his throat before he spoke, "I put her in bed.  By the way, would you please stop calling her, 'she and her', and tell me what her name is?"


	6. Chapter 6

            Sara stared at Grissom and then started to giggle.  "I'm so sorry, I didn't realize I hadn't yet."  Her laughter grew and became contagious.  Soon Grissom had joined in and it just made her laugh harder until tears ran down her face.  She drew in a breath and held her stomach as she tried to control her laughter.  Finally she gained some semblance of control and with a huge smile on her face still on her face, walked closer and put her arms around him then looked deep into his eyes.  "I couldn't think of a name suitable to go with yours or mine that I really liked so I named her something unusual and something so not us."

            "And that would be?"

            "Laredo."

            He blinked, "After the car or the city?"

            "After the song about the city."

            "What song?"

            "It's a country song, you'll like it."

            "So is she Laredo Grissom or Laredo Sidle.  Which of course neither one sounds right anyway?"

            "I know but I didn't like anything else and… she is Laredo Georgiana Grissom."

            "So, you did list my name as the father and didn't just leave it blank?"

            "Yes because if anything would've happened to me, Shannon would have told you about her.  I didn't want there to be any legal problems."

            "Oh."  He thought about that and it made perfect sense.  "So, what have you made for dinner and since when do you cook?"

            "Why does everyone think I can't cook, I did grow up in a B & B you know.  I made Lasagna and I was about to make some garlic bread…" Her speech slowed as she saw a movement and realized that Laredo stood at the end of the counter with her thumb in her mouth.  Grissom followed her eyes and saw her.  "Sara, does she know about me, I mean, you know, who her father is?"

            "You didn't see the picture I have of you on her night stand did you?"

            He shook his head.

            She smiled at him but directed her next comment to her daughter. "Laredo, do you know who this is?"  Laredo looked up at him and then turned and ran down to her room.  They watched as she walked back with a picture frame in her hand and then when she reached them, she looked at the picture and then back at him, then she looked at the picture and back at him again.  She took her thumb out of her mouth, handed Grissom the picture and said, "Daddy."

            And Grissom's heart exploded.

            He squatted down to Laredo's level.  He held out his hands to her and she walked over and let him pick her up.  He stood up with Laredo in his arms.  While he studied her profile, he quietly said, "By the way, there is only one problem with just sharing her between us."  He paused as he turned to look at Sara.  "We need to share our lives with each other also."  At that, he walked off with Laredo into the living room.  Sara just stared after them and the tears started to run down her face again.

Later, as they sat at the table, with Sara on the side, and with Grissom on her left at the head and Laredo in a Sassy seat on her right, Grissom filled Sara in on his and Laredo's snack time.  "She did all of that by herself.  Did you show her how or did she just pick it up on her own?"

            "On her own.  Shannon said she started doing that after my last visit.  She had watched me the whole time."

            "Well it's said that children learn by example…"

            "Oh yeah they do, I have to watch the words that come out of my mouth all the time."  She stated drily.  Grissom took a bite of cake when she said that and nearly choked on it.  He said, "I'll need to remember that."

            Sara stood up and took some of the dishes off the table and into the kitchen.  She came back with a washcloth in hand and cleaned Laredo's hands and face.  Then she leaned down and gave her a really big, smooshy kiss on her neck and it caused Laredo to fall into a fit of giggles.

            Grissom watched this interaction between mother and daughter and knew just how much Sara loved their daughter.

            "I think someone is going to need a bath tonight, missy."  Laredo looked up at her mother and started bouncing and tapping the table with her hands and giggled even more.  "Or how about a shower with mommy?"

            "Yeeeaaaahhhh!"  And Laredo started clapping and kicking her legs.  Sara picked her up and put her down on the floor.  "Okay, you go get your pajamas and mommy will finish up in here then we will go take a shower."  She patted her on her little butt and Laredo ran down into her room.  Grissom in the meantime joined Sara in cleaning off the table and put the dishes in the dishwasher.

            "I'm going to head out to the car and get my bag.  Umm… where am I going to sleep?"

            Sara stopped loading the dishes into the dishwasher and looked up at him sheepishly as she began chewing on her bottom lip.  She went back to putting the dishes in the dishwasher and said, "I… thought… that maybe… you would just… sleep with me."  She finished the last of her comment in a rush.  Grissom at first wasn't sure if he heard it.  He didn't say anything so she looked back up at him and saw a look of astonishment on his face.  "Umm… if you don't want to… there is… umm… a bed…"

            He put a finger on her lips to silence her and leaned over to whisper in her ear, "It's okay… I would love to."  He reached up and gently placed his hand on her neck and then he softly planted a kiss on her cheek.  Sara reached up and held his arm in the crook of his elbow.  When he kissed her cheek she felt a catch in her throat that caused an involuntary intake of breath.  _God, he has the softest touch._  She had missed that so much.

            Grissom leaned back and looked in her eyes.  Then they both turned and saw Laredo with a blanket held to her chest and the thumb in her mouth popped out as she grinned and said, "Daddy kissin' mommy."


	7. Chapter 7

            Grissom walked back into the house, whistling.  He heard the water running in the shower and smiled as he walked down the hallway.  Giggling was coming from the bathroom and he heard Sara singing to Laredo in the shower.  He walked down further to the room across from Laredo's as he assumed it was Sara's bedroom, opened the door and turned on the light.  At first glance he was a little startled at the furnishings but then chastised himself.  Even though he had never been in any of Sara's apartments before, it still never occurred to him that she had a flair for decorating.  He looked at the four-poster bed and the gauze that was hanging from the top of the rails down to the floor all around the bed.  There were some pictures on the wall of what appeared to be the Mediterranean.  As he glanced toward the far wall, he saw French doors leading out onto a patio at the back of the house.  It was quite an arrangement. _Very romantic even._  He thought as he placed his bag in the closet on the floor and closed the door.  Then he took one last look around the room.  _Very nice._

            He stepped out as he closed the door again behind him and then made his way back to the living room.  After he took a seat on the sofa, he heard Sara and Laredo walk into her bedroom.

            Sara, as Laredo watched and bounced on her bed, dressed in a pair of flannel pajama pants and a tank top and then put her wet hair up in a clip.  Then she tied back the gauze around the bed to the four posts.  She quickly grabbed Laredo and laid her on her back and blew a raspberry on her tummy, which sent Laredo into a giggle fit again.  "Okay, little cricket, you go get a book and I'll read it to you in the living room."  She picked her up and put her on the floor and Laredo took off in search of a book from her room.

            Sara slowly walked down the hall way to the living room and found Grissom sitting and resting his head on the back of the sofa.  She made her way over to him and sat down close enough so that their bodies touched.  He picked his head up and found that their faces were now just inches apart.  She gave him a smile while she reached up and rubbed his cheek softly with the back of her fingers.

            Laredo chose at that moment to run into the living room with a book and ran right to them.

            "Laredo, did you find a book you wanted me to read?"  Sara asked her after tearing her gaze away from Grissom.  But Laredo had other plans.  She handed the book to Grissom and said, "I want Daddy to read me a story."  Grissom smiled at her and took the book out of her grasp then picked her up and placed her between him and Sara.  Laredo put her thumb in her mouth as Grissom began to read in a soft and gentle tone about a very hungry caterpillar that ate his way through the days of the week until he became a butterfly.

            As Grissom read the book, he took note of how many times Laredo would point to the correct pictures on the book every time he said a word that described one of the pictures.  Laredo had certainly received her parents' intellect and maybe more so.  _I just hope she didn't inherit something else._   He thought to himself as he looked down at the now sleeping princess who had fallen asleep against his side.

            Sara had also dozed off after she laid her head on Laredo's lap so Laredo could play with her hair.  Grissom smiled at the two and realized how much he had missed out on.  _Why did everything have to be so hard for him and Sara?_   He sat there awhile and watched them until Sara finally stirred.  

            Sara slowly sat up, stretched and yawned.  Then at that point, she found Grissom staring at her.  She grinned and looked at him and Laredo curled together.  She made a move to stand and pick Laredo up but Grissom stopped her with a movement of his hand.  He whispered, "Let me hold her awhile."  Sara smiled and nodded in agreement.  Then she moved toward the television and looked for a movie.  She spied the one she wanted and popped it into the VCR.  As she walked back over to the sofa, she switched off the one lamp that was on and grabbed the remote and turned on the television as she took a seat on the other side of Grissom.

            Grissom liked this arrangement.  He had one arm around his daughter and then reached around with the other to cradle Sara as she leaned into him and curled her legs under her and against the arm of the sofa.  She reached around him and laid her arm against his chest as she curled next to him.  Yes, Grissom was enjoying this very much.

            The movie was one Grissom had never seen before.  He recognized the actress as Sandra Bullock and the actor was from a cop and lawyer show that Catherine always liked to watch.  He did find it pretty funny and the fact didn't escape him of how much he chuckled at it and it had nothing to do with the fact that every time he did, Sara would snuggle closer and would… well it just had nothing to do with that at all.

            When the movie was over, Sara turned the sound down a little more and then walked around the coffee table to get a better angle for picking Laredo up so she could put her to bed.  After she returned and positioned herself in the place that Laredo had previously occupied.  Grissom asked, "Does Laredo always sleep this much?"

            "Do you really think she does with me as her mother?"  Sara laughed softly.  "We had an **energetic** morning at the zoo and then we went shopping for groceries.  She practically wore herself out running around and playing.  Plus she didn't get to bed too early last night because she was too excited about going to the zoo."

            Grissom smiled.  She made such a lovely mother.  "You've only had what, three or four times, that you have had two days in a row off since you moved to Vegas?  That had to be hard Sara."

            Sara laid her head down on his chest and put her arm around him.  "It has been hard.  But Shannon brought her up a couple of times too."  She felt Grissom tense at her last statement and it caused her to sit back up abruptly.  She caught a glint of something in Grissom's eyes when she looked at him.  "I'm sorry Gris…"

            "When were those times, Sara?" Grissom asked in a tight voice.

            "Well the most recent time was when I was at the vineyard and I was late answering your page."

            "She was with you and Hank at the vineyard?"  His pulse began to climb.

            Sara stood up and stepped away from him.  She turned around and counted to ten before she answered.  "Grissom, did you think I lied to you when I said that Hank and I are just friends?"  She whipped around and nearly lost her balance.  Grissom had stood and was directly behind her.  He didn't know what to say in response to her question because, yes, he thought she was involved with Hank.  "I don't know Sara, I guess, yes, I did think you and Hank were actually involved."

            "God Gris, how can you think that I would be with someone else when I have such strong feelings for you?" Sara felt like her dream that seemed to be coming true was now fading out of sight.

            "Sara, are you saying you aren't involved with Hank?"  Grissom was confused.  He wanted not just his daughter in his life but also her mother.  But he may have ruined that chance with that last question.

            "I don't believe you, Gris.  How many ways can I say it?  Hank and I are just friends and no, he wasn't with us at the vineyard and he doesn't even know about Laredo."  She put both of her hands on his face as she looked deep into his eyes and said, "I would never ever do that to you.  I know how you feel about Hank.  I saw it every time he was mentioned or that you saw him.  Even Catherine, Warrick and Nick noticed it.  He isn't apart of Laredo's life.  He is just someone I can spend time with without worrying about getting emotionally tied to."  She stopped her rant and took her hands off of his face and placed them in his hands.  "Hank is in love with Krista from Brass' department.  He's just afraid of asking her out because well, she's ten years older than him and he thinks that she thinks he's too young for her.  Kind of like how you feel about me and don't say I'm wrong about that."

            Grissom wasn't sure what to think.  He hadn't thought he let his feelings show that much.  _What am I supposed to say to that?_ He thought as he looked in her eyes and saw she meant every word.  "I'm sorry Sara, I guess you're not the only one who is confused.  I really thought you were seeing Hank and so I backed away."

            Sara leaned forward and let her head rest on his chest.   "Can't you see how much I want to be with you?"  Grissom slowly let go of her hands as she raised them to his chest and he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her on top of her head.  "Sara, why is this so hard for us?  We have a beautiful little girl in the other room that was conceived out of love but we can't seem to ever communicate our feelings to each other.  Why?"

            "Maybe, we're both scared."  She said in a muffled tone as her face lay against his chest.

            "Scared of what?"  Grissom asked as he considered several possibilities of what she might mean.

            "Scared of losing."  Sara said a little clearer after moving her face to the side.

            "Losing what?"  He considered it.  She probably meant their friendship.

            "Our friendship."  She whispered it softly, as something she cherished of great value.

            He reached under her chin and raised her head so he could look into her eyes.  "Sara, we will always be friends, because we were friends first."

            Sara was an inch away from Grissom's face.  She slowly closed that inch and pressed her lips to his.  His response was soft but with inquisitiveness.  Four years was a long time but she tasted just as sweet as she did then.  The kiss deepened and she lifted her arms up and around Grissom's neck.  She ran her fingers through his curls as he lowered his hands to her waist.  They stood their kissing for several minutes when Sara pulled away.  He slowly opened his eyes to see the uncertainty in hers.  "Sara, we don't have to do anything.  We have a lot to think about and say before we go there again."

            "There is still so much I don't know about you, Gris."

            "Likewise, Sara."  

            At that, she looked up at him and smiled then took his hand in hers and tugged on it as she said, "Sleep with me.  Just sleep."

            Grissom nodded.  They walked down the hallway toward the bedroom but as they got closer they saw a movement in Laredo's room from the shine of the night-light.  Sara turned toward Grissom and motioned that she would take care of Laredo and that he should go in to her bedroom.  Sara then quietly walked into Laredo's room. 

            Grissom moved off to Sara's bedroom.  He noticed that the gauze that had been hanging around the bed was now tied back to each of the four posts of the bed.  He undressed accept for his t-shirt and boxers and then climbed into the bed.  Moments later, Sara walked in and moved to the other side of the bed and got under the covers.  Grissom moved slightly so she could curl up to him and he would be able to wrap his arm around her.  She laid her arm across his chest and soon found that the warmth of him caressed her into a deep slumber.  Grissom quickly followed close behind.


	8. Chapter 8

            Grissom awoke to an unusual sight the next morning.  Somehow during the middle of the night, a small body had wedged herself in between Grissom and Sara.  Sara had tucked the little miss into her chest and had her arm curled around her.  Laredo had at some point reached out and held onto Grissom's arm as she slept, so Grissom propped himself up on his arm as he watched the two ladies in his life sleeping soundly.

            Grissom thought about the night before and his conversation with Sara.  Nothing was certain between them, but he felt better with the knowledge that Sara wanted to create a relationship with him that was more than just the friendship he thought was all she had wanted.  The thing was that he now knew that they had a lot to learn about each other and it was going to take some time.  He wanted to get them back to Vegas as soon as possible so he could start doing all the things he should have done before, like taking her out on an actual date for instance.  He also knew that the hardest thing was to communicate with her.  His starting point, he felt, was going to be in telling her about his hearing.  He hated the thought that Laredo might one day end up with that burden.  As he thought that, he looked down to find his matching blue eyes staring back up at him.

            Laredo's eyes didn't, however, reflect the pain in his.  She wore a huge smile on her face that, although was partially obscured by a thumb in her mouth, didn't hide the fact that she was happy.  She reached up and patted Grissom on his cheek, which in turn made him lean down and kiss her on her forehead.

            That woke Sara up.  She was tickled by Grissom's curls.  She saw him straighten back up and met his eyes when he glanced at her.  "Good morning, Gris."

            "Good morning, Sara."  He leaned back over and kissed her on her cheek.  Now he had kissed both of his ladies good morning.

            "Well, looks like we're all awake.  Why don't we get some breakfast, cricket?"  Sara poked Laredo in the ribs as she said that and it made her start giggling.  

            Grissom's eyebrows rose at her nickname for Laredo.  "Cricket?"  He asked her.

            Sara looked up and grinned.  "Yeah.  I named her that after I realized, for as much as she giggles, it sounded as repetitive as a cricket."

            Grissom liked the nickname and knew that it was going to take instantly for him.  Laredo started kicking the covers off and managed to get up and crawled off toward the foot of the bed to get down.  Grissom snaked out a hand and latched onto her leg and pulled her backwards.  She started laughing as he initiated the tickling fest, which soon included Sara.

            LATER, after they dressed and had breakfast, they drove down to the wharf and walked along the beach.  Sara filled him in on her plans to pack some of the stuff she wanted to move to Vegas on the next weekend.  Grissom laid out a blanket on the sand and they both sat down on it.  Laredo had walked over toward the water and picked up a shell.  "Laredo, don't get in the water too much.  Don't fall honey."  Sara called after her.

            "She's fine.  The water isn't rushing in too badly this morning."  Grissom tried to smooth her worries.

            "It's just that she gets ear infections so easily.  I don't want her to fall and possibly get water in her ears."  Sara squinted from the sunshine as she watched Laredo walk back towards them.

            Grissom however, looked at Sara with fear written all over his face.  When Sara turned to look at him she was startled at the transformation.  "Gil, what is it?  What's wrong?"

            He wasn't sure how to proceed.  He couldn't remember if he had a lot of ear infections when he was little and wondered if that was some part of the Otosclerosis.  While he watched Laredo show her mother the shell she found he said, "I'm not sure how to tell you something.  It's serious and I've wanted to tell you about it, but held off because I was still unsure of my own feelings."

            Sara reached over and touched his arm.  "Gil, you can tell me."

            He grabbed onto her hand and rubbed the back of it with his thumb.  "It's not easy.  I knew I would have to tell you one day, but now that I know about Laredo I find I have to tell you sooner than later."  He fell silent as he looked into her eyes and read the concern in them for him.  "I am slowly going deaf."

            Tears started to form immediately and she asked, "How?"

            "I have Otosclerosis.  It's a genetic disorder."

            "Inherited?"  She gasped.

            "Yes.  Sara, I never thought I would have children.  They still aren't sure how it occurs, but you mentioned Laredo's ear infections and it scared me to think that she may one day end up with it."

            Sara stared quietly at Laredo as she searched for something to say.  She was sad for Grissom and she feared for Laredo, but she knew that if she had Grissom with her, to support them, they would be okay.  And she would always be there to support him when he needed it.  "I don't know what to say."

            "It's okay, you don't have to say anything."

            "No, it's not okay."  Sara took a deep breath and held up her hand to forestall Grissom from saying anything.  "I'm here for you Gil, to help in anyway that I can and to support you, and to be there for you to talk to.  I just," She paused to collect her thoughts.  "I just don't want you to back away from me now and shut down.  We can deal with this together."

            It was his turn now to feel the tears well up in his eyes.  He didn't know how she would react and couldn't have asked for a better way.   "I won't and we will."  

            Sara pulled him into a hug and the investigator in her proceeded to ask him questions.  They sat there awhile as they discussed the possible treatments. He also told her that he didn't remember if he had ear infections when he was little, so they both decided that they would check into it after they got resettled in Vegas.  She asked how long he had known and he told her about his mother and then about his lapses of nothingness.  He could tell that it upset her that he hadn't told her sooner and they talked about that too.

            After a couple of hours of talking, Laredo started to get cranky and Sara realized that it was lunch time and that they needed to eat.  So they put the blanket in the back of her car and drove home.  Sara warmed up some leftovers and quickly gave some to Laredo.  She didn't want her to get any crankier with Grissom there and spoil the mood.

            They sat down again like they did the previous night and ate lunch.  It was then that Grissom realized the lasagna was meatless.  He'd never had better.  The phone rang and Sara went to get it.  She returned with it and handed it to Grissom.  "It's for you."

            His eyebrows rose and then he frowned and took the phone.  "No one but Catherine knows I'm here."  Sara nodded.

            "Hello?"

_            "Hi, Gris.  How is everything going?"  Catherine was not one for patience._

            "Umm, well we're having lunch and then I don't know what we're going to do.  Why what's up?"

            He glanced at Sara who was wearing a smirk because they both knew why Catherine called.

_            "Nothing, just thought I'd call and well, you know, see how things are going."_

            Catherine wasn't going to give up easily and Grissom knew that, so he winked at Sara and proceeded to tell Catherine something that would shut her up for awhile.

            "Well actually, I was about to leave to go to the airport so I could pick up Hank.  He's supposed to be here in an hour."  Grissom spoke slowly to ensure that Catherine heard every word.  "Catherine, are you there?  Catherine..."

            "Umm, oh, yeah, yeah, I umm was just watching the traffic move.  I, umm, Gris, what is going on?  Why is Hank flying out there?"  Catherine was very near to having a breakdown.

            "Well, Catherine, I gotta hit the road.  I don't want to be late picking him up so he can see Sara."  He almost broke up at that point.  "I'll have to call you later or maybe just talk to you when I get back in town.  Bye."  And he hung up.  Grissom laid the phone on the table and after seeing the look on Sara's face, he couldn't hold it in anymore.  He laughed so hard tears started to run down his face.  

            Sara's mouth hung open and she hit him on his shoulder.  "I can't believe you just did that!"  She looked at him with astonishment and then started to smile and then Grissom's laughter became contagious.  She stepped over and sat in his lap.  They continued laughing until they couldn't take it anymore.  "She has got be going out of her mind with that."

            "Oh yeah! Well, she'll figure it out and get over it.  That's what she gets for interfering, even though I really don't mind this time."  Grissom said as he wiped the tears away from his eyes.  "Just give it a little time and my cell phone will be ringing."

            And as if on cue, it did.  He reached down and answered.  "Hello."             

_            "Gil, please tell me you were joking.  I mean, Sara wouldn't, I mean she doesn't... Please tell me you were joking."  Catherine sounded so horrified and sad all at once._

            "Are you going to interfere again?"  Grissom asked in a tight voice.

            _"Umm, no, never, I'm sorry, but you and Sara, well you belong together and well..."_

            "Catherine, are you going to interfere again?"

            No reply came for a few seconds and just when he thought he was going to have to ask again, she said quietly, _"No."_

            "Okay, that wasn't so hard now was it?  No, I am not going to get Hank from the airport."  He grinned and looked over at Sara.

            Sara listened to the one sided conversation as she washed Laredo's face off.  She shook her head in disbelief.  She now knew how to handle Catherine.  She lifted Laredo out of her chair and told her, "Go get your blanky and we'll take a nap."  Laredo vanished down the hallway.

            "Okay, I'll see you guys tomorrow night.  I have some favors to ask of you so beware.  Bye."  Grissom hung up the phone and handed it to Sara and then finished his lunch.

            Sara returned from the living room and put the dishes in the dishwasher with Grissom's help.  "I'm going to lay Laredo down for a nap and then we can talk.  Okay?"  Grissom nodded and saw Laredo coming in with her blanket.  Sara picked her up and headed for the recliner and settled in.  Then Sara began humming to her until she fell asleep.


	9. Chapter 9

            Sara returned after putting Laredo in her bed to nap.  It was still early in the afternoon and now she and Grissom would have time to talk.  She grabbed a couple of waters out of the fridge and handed one to Grissom and then as he leaned on the arm and back of the sofa, Sara laid against his right side with his arm cradling her, and discussed the move she would be preparing in the next week.

            On the following Saturday she would have movers come to take everything to Vegas.  There wasn't going to be enough room in her apartment for everything, so Grissom offered to get a storage unit for her when he got back and she agreed.  The second bedroom at her apartment was empty, so she wanted all of the stuff in Laredo's bedroom to go in there.

            Grissom thought of something to help out.  "Why don't we have Catherine and the boys help with unpacking and that way they can all be introduced to Laredo at the same time?"

            "Are you sure?  They're going to know just from seeing her who her father is."  Sara asked as she tilted her head up and backward to meet his eyes.  She needed to make sure that Grissom wanted to take that step.

            Grissom gazed down at her and smiled.  He knew what she was thinking.  "I know.  I already thought about that and I think the best course of action is to come straight out with it.  I had planned on telling them as soon as I got back about Laredo, with your permission of course."

            Sara squeezed his hand and smiled.  This gets better all the time.  "If you feel comfortable with it then by all means do so.  I wasn't sure how to tell them as it was.  This will work out even better."  She put her head back down and settled back against him once again.

            "It might be a good idea if I get your key from you, so we can be there when you arrive along with the movers."  But that wasn't all he had planned to use the key for.  No way, Grissom had another project for the week ahead for himself and his team.                                                

            "Hmm, okay, maybe you guys can re-shuffle the furniture in the living room, so the movers will have more space to maneuver through."  She said that without even thinking about it.  Her thoughts were suddenly elsewhere as she remembered her letter that she had written to him.  She turned and looked up at him.  "Grissom, why did you..."  She hesitated, not sure if she should ask.

            Grissom's eyebrows rose at her hesitation.  "Why did I what?"

            She repositioned herself so that she was facing him and put her head on his chest as she stroked his hand that was on his stomach.  "Why did you come down here?  I mean I know you wanted to meet Laredo, but..."  Again she was hesitant about asking.

            Grissom wasn't sure what she wanted to ask, but had a feeling of what it might be.  He gently put his finger and thumb on her chin and tilted her head upward to look into her face.  "Sara, what is it?  You can say it and it's not going to make me want to leave."

            "What do you want from this?  Laredo and me?  How far do you want this to go?"  She put her head back down quickly, not able to meet his eyes.

            "I think that is something to be decided between us both, don't you?"  Grissom felt her tense when he spoke.  It wasn't what she had wanted to hear.  But he wasn't finished yet.  "Would it be alright if we take some time and actually do this right?  You know, some dates, dinners, time spent together outside of work.  Learn how to communicate."  She nodded.  He pulled her closer and whispered, "I want everything."  

            She looked up at him again, but this time leaned closer and touched his lips with hers in a passionate kiss.  She pulled away and licked her lips tasting him.  She wanted to do so much more, but he was right, they needed to go slow, so she pushed herself away from him and stood up.  "I should get some stuff done while she's sleeping.  Would you mind watching her for awhile if I leave to get some boxes?"

            He smiled.  Again he knew what she was thinking.  She wanted to leave before things got out of hand.  "I'll be fine.  I've watched Lindsey plenty of times for Catherine.  Go ahead but don't take too long."  

            Sara leaned over and kissed him again then put on her shoes, grabbed her purse and was out the door.

            After she left, Grissom walked down to check on Laredo.  He peaked in to see if she was still asleep and sadly, she still was.  He went back to the living room and looked through Sara's books, but found that most of them were parenting books or children's books.  Then he noticed the photo albums on the bottom shelf.  He pulled one out and started to flip through it.  The first page held a picture that appeared to be a sonogram and it read - Baby Sidle: 13 weeks. _That's __Laredo__ at 13 weeks. _ Grissom thought as his fingers touched the picture.  He slowly made his way back to the sofa with the album.

            The next picture was of Sara as she held her shirt up to the bottom of her breasts and her other hand had pushed the front of her pants down exposing her tummy.  It was slightly round and the picture read – 6 months._  She really isn't showing much._  But then he saw the next one and it was of her again only it read – 9 months – and it looked like she had swallowed a pumpkin.  Right below the picture was another of her with her hair up and wisps of it had fallen out and around her neck and face.  She was in the nursery in a white cotton nightgown standing in front of the crib and she was looking at her tummy with a smile and appeared to be gently rubbing it.  Grissom smiled.  The picture was lovely and he thought about taking it to put on his desk at the office.  He would ask Sara when she got back.

            There were several pictures of Sara at eight or nine months working on the nursery with two other women.  Grissom recognized one of them as Shannon and figured that the elderly woman in the pictures that was helping her with the decorating must have been her aunt.  He wondered how it was that Shannon was in a position to take over for Sara so much in parenting Laredo.  _I'll have to ask Sara about that..._ He thought as he turned the page to see Sara in a hospital room looking worn down and her hair was damp with sweat.  She must have been in labor and the look on her face was one that he had seen before.  It had all the signs that she was saying – _Get that damn camera out of here._  Whoever had taken the picture was not a smart person.

            He looked around the room at that point and over toward the television where she kept the videos.  _I wonder if she has a video made of the birth?_  He decided not to look for it until she got back.  He turned the page to see Sara cradling a very small and tightly wrapped bundle of joy in a pink blanket.  The picture next to it was of Laredo, newborn.  Her eyes were open and her face was a blotchy red.  He touched the picture and smiled.  On the next page were pictures of the baby shower and one of Sara and Laredo in the shower.  Laredo must have been about four months.  He wondered who took the pictures, but then realized it was probably Shannon.  There were more pictures of Sara and Laredo, and Shannon and Laredo, and Sara's Aunt and Laredo.  In all of them, Laredo was always happy.  He sat back and relaxed as he daydreamed about how he imagined Laredo must have been the last three years.  He couldn't visualize her crying.  He had seen her get a little cranky earlier because of being hungry but that was nothing.  Then Grissom started to think about all the times he missed out on because of one comment he made to Sara.  Just one comment had kept him out of his daughter's life for three and a half years.  _No, make that four.  I wasn't there during the pregnancy._  He finally allowed the tears to fall that had been building up in his eyes.  He set the photo album on the coffee table and stood up as he wiped the tears off of his face.  He needed some air.

            SARA ARRIVED BACK after about forty-five minutes to a very quiet house.  Grissom was nowhere to be seen.  She set the boxes she had in her arms down on the floor in the living room and then quickly went to check on Laredo.  She was still sound asleep.  _Where is he?  He wouldn't have gone far, not with __Laredo__ here._  She considered that as she walked into her bedroom and found it empty too, but then the curtain on the French doors moved from the wind.  At the same time, she saw a shadow fall across the patio and knew where he was.

            Grissom stood against the railing that made up the wall of the wood patio and stared out at the toys and swing set in the backyard.  He allowed the tears to continue to fall, not realizing that Sara stood behind him.

            She quietly walked up and then put her arms around him.

            He on the other hand jumped at her contact and tried to quickly wipe the tears away, but wasn't quick enough.


	10. Chapter 10

            Sara released her hold on Grissom as he jumped away from her.  The startled look along with the tears on his face made her take a step back.  She had never seen him cry before and she wasn't sure if she liked it.  Some women liked a man to be emotional and sentimental but for Grissom to cry, well, she didn't have a good feeling about it.  "Gil, what's wrong?  Did something happen while I was gone?  Did someone call?"  As she said the last, she stepped closer to him, but he backed away a couple of steps.

            "No."  He turned and looked away toward the yard again.  He hadn't wanted her to see him like that.  "Nothing happened and nothing's wrong.  It's nothing."

            "Gil, I know something's not right.  You've never shed tears over anything that I have ever seen so it has to be something."  Sara wanted to soothe whatever it was away but knew he really should talk about it.  _What happened after I left?_  She thought as she recalled the photo albums on the coffee table that she saw when she came back in.  She took a step closer.  He didn't turn but he also didn't back away this time.  "Was it something with the pictures?"

            Her question startled him.  _She really is a great investigator._  He thought.  Communication, it was the hard part of their relationship or un-relationship.  He could drown in the flood of thoughts that statement evoked.  Truth was what was needed here and he wasn't good at letting his feelings out but truth would have to be the way to go.  "Yes.  I really hate myself at the moment."

            "Why?"  Sara whispered the question as she reached out and rubbed his back and tried to look around and up at his face.  She knew those photos backwards and forwards and had to wonder what would bring this on.  They were very endearing.  _Oh.  That's it.  He wasn't there for those photos much less those times._  She really didn't know what to say, but she knew she had to try.  "Gil, you didn't know.  I made the decision to keep it from you.  You shouldn't blame yourself.  If anyone, you should be blaming me."

            He turned and looked intently at her face then he cupped it in his hands and looked deeply into her eyes.  "No.  I was the one who said I didn't want children.  If I hadn't been so self-absorbed at that moment, I would have thought about why you called.  If I had even vaguely recalled that a couple of months before we had been together on such a special night I might have considered talking to you more, but no, I was so full of self-pity at the moment.  It isn't your fault."

            Sara could only look into his eyes.  She had to somehow get him to understand.  "We both made quick decisions in our life that we now have to face the repercussions of.  But what really matters is what we do from here on out.  You now know about Laredo and will have so many more years with her."

            Grissom remained silent but he acknowledged her words with a nod of his head.  She reached up and ran her fingers through his hair above his ear.  "I have several videos of Laredo including her birth, her first steps amongst other things.  Do you want to watch those tonight?  Laredo always likes to watch them."

            He looked at her and leaned down to touch his forehead to hers.  "I would really enjoy that.  I wanted to ask something of you too."

            "Yes.  What is it?"

            "There was a picture of you.  The one when you were still pregnant and you're standing in the nursery with a nightgown on and looking at your belly and rubbing it."  Grissom watched to see the flash of recognition in her eyes.  "Can I have that one?"

            Sara smiled.  _He's such a sweet man._  She stepped a little closer and Grissom placed his hands on her waist and pulled her against him.  "Yes, you can have it, but may I ask what you are going to do with it?"

            "I, well, I was going to put it on my desk at work."  Grissom grinned.  He felt so foolish, but knew how it must sound to her.  He was right though, because when he said it she kissed him.  It wasn't a fully passionate kiss but a tender and endearing one.

            "I should go make something for dinner."

            Grissom pulled her back as she tried to step away.  "Why don't we order in?  That way we'll have more time for the videos.  I have to leave in the morning, so we will only have tonight."

            "Okay, it's a date.  But, Gil…we don't only have tonight.  We have the rest of our lives."  Sara kissed him again and left him standing there speechless.

            _How does she do that?_

            They walked back into the bedroom and then checked in on Laredo.  She had shifted in her sleep since Sara had last checked on her.  Sara walked over to her and saw that Laredo wasn't really asleep, so she poked her in the ribs and caused her to start giggling.  "I thought so, you little cricket.  I think Daddy will just have to come over here and tickle you some more," that made her giggle even more.  Grissom walked over and leaned down and kissed her on her neck and let his whiskers and hair tickle her.  Laredo writhed in laughter underneath his chin but then she started hiccupping because of laughing so hard.  They pulled her up from the bed and took her out into the living room.

            While they waited for the deliveryman, Grissom kept Laredo busy, trying unsuccessfully to rid her of her hiccups.

            Sara, meanwhile, made something for Laredo to eat and then when the deliveryman came Grissom got the food from him and put it on the table.  By this time, they both noticed that Laredo's hiccups had disappeared.  Laredo now had her food set in front of her as Grissom and Sara dug through the sacks to get their own.

            While they ate, Laredo kept pointing at Sara's portions and called certain items 'bugs' and Sara in turn teased her about the noodles being worms which made Laredo giggle as she watched her mother eat them.  Grissom, not exactly part of the fun didn't mind, he had more fun watching them and watching Laredo giggle and smile.

            After they finished and put the dishes in the dishwasher, Sara got Laredo changed into pajamas and then they sat down to watch the videos.  Laredo found her place on Grissom's lap and Sara curled beside him like the night before.  They started out with videos of Sara at home and work during her pregnancy.  

            They watched the videos for about an hour and then they came to another video after Laredo was born and she was just at the crawling age.  She was on a blanket as Sara, her Aunt and Shannon were having a picnic.  Laredo pulled herself up on her hands and her knees and rocked back and forth like she wanted to crawl, but never did.  As she was in this position, a butterfly landed on her arm and she caught sight of it and her rocking stopped.  Her eyes lit up and her mouth made a little O as she began making a cooing sound at the butterfly in excitement.  Then she tried to reach up and touch it but lost her balance and fell over.  When she started to cry, Sara leaned down and picked her up and soothed her until she stopped.  Sara talked to her about the butterfly and it almost seemed that Laredo understood as she stared intently into her mother's face.  At that point, Sara looked at the camera, as she smiled and said, "I think she likes bugs just like her daddy."

            After that they moved on to another video where Laredo took her first step.  As they watched her pull herself up next to the sofa, Grissom glanced down at a now sleeping princess.  He smiled and sighed as he smoothed a tendril of her hair away from her face.  Then Sara got his attention to go back to the video.  He saw Sara kneel down in front of the camera and held out a bug, a beetle, toward Laredo.  She encouraged Laredo to take her first step towards her.  It would only be two or three steps.  Grissom leaned forward a little to catch everything about this moment.  Her eyes lit up and she stepped hesitantly and wobbled like she was going to fall.  Sara continued in a soothing voice to encourage her and she moved her other foot out and let go of the sofa.  She reached for the bug and took another step.  And just as she touched Sara's hand, Sara grabbed her other hand and steadied her as she stepped again toward the bug.  She then picked Laredo up and rewarded her for her steps by showing her the bug up close. Laredo was all open-mouthed and cooing again.

            Grissom rewound the video to see it again.  He enjoyed this immensely and wanted to do this all night.  Sara on the other hand, picked up Laredo and put her into bed.  When she came back to the living room the video had progressed to the point that showed Laredo in her crib, she stared at a spot on the wall and it moved.  It was a spider.  She pulled herself up and stood against the railing and put her thumb in her mouth.  She then saw her mommy watching her and pointed at the spider and when she took her thumb out of her mouth she puckered her mouth up into an O again and said, "ooh, ooh, Bug."

            Grissom again rewound the video and watched her speak her first words.  Sara had curled up next to him and watched his face intently.  She wanted to remember his expression forever.  She leaned forward and asked, "Do you want to see the birth now?"

            Grissom turned to her and his eyes lit up as he said, "Yes."  So Sara stood up and pulled out the tape and put in the other.  Sara and Grissom then snuggled back up together but Sara forewarned him before starting the tape.  "I want to warn you now, it was a long delivery and painful."


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: I apologize for the late update of this story. It is posted on my site as well as all of my other stories. **I will continue to update the chapters of this story here, however, for my other stories, Nights of Jasmine and A Time for Love, look for updates only at my website listed in my bio.**

Reviews may be left for this story, here at ff.net, but please don't hold back from emailing me on my site for the other stories. I always like to hear what you think of them, whether good or bad.  
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The video started rolling and it showed people leaving from what appeared to have been a baby shower. She and Shannon said goodbye to the last of the guests and then with Shannon still filming Sara, they walked into the kitchen.

Sara turned a couple of times to Shannon and told her to stop filming. Shannon could be heard behind the camera saying that it was a new tape and she wanted to get more on it before she stopped. Sara chose at that moment to get a piece of pie out of the fridge, but immediately dropped it as a spasm of pain coursed through her. "Shannon! I'm having a contraction again. Oh God that hurts." Sara then, slowly, in pain, leaned against the counter and ran her hand over her stomach.

Shannon still held the camera as she said, "Don't hold your breath, Sara, do your breathing. I think we better get you to the hospital. I'll get the car." She walked back down the hallway and you could hear in the background Sara yell out through gritted teeth, "Turn that damn camera off first."

The screen went blank.

When the picture came back, it showed Sara in a hospital room and a flash going off as she looked at the door. She had a grim face and sweat had drenched her hair. "Aunt Sophie, please no more pictures, the video is bad enough." She cried out as another contraction wracked her body.

Aunt Sophie sat on the bed next to her and rubbed her hand. "Breathe Sara, do your breathing, like we practiced. When did the doctor see you last?"

"I don't remember. It's been awhile, but the nurse keeps coming in to check on how far I've dilated. The last time it was only seven. He wants me at ten before we go into the delivery room. It's been what, seventeen hours, Shannon?

"A little more than that, but close enough. I'm going to go find the doctor and get him in here." Shannon and the camera had turned and you could only see a blank wall.

"No, you stay with Sara, I'll go find him." Aunt Sophie quietly stated, and then she could be seen leaving the room as Shannon had swung around to watch her.

Sara lay back against the bed and closed her eyes. "Shannon I don't know how much more of this I can take. It's too long. I'm so tired."

"Hey, Sara, it's okay, if the doctor isn't worried about it then you shouldn't. Just keep breathing and Sophie will get the doctor. Okay? It's all right. You're going to do just fine." Shannon soothed Sara as much as she could, but she was worried too. She just hoped it didn't show through.

"Promise me something, Shannon? If this goes all wrong, I need you to take the baby to Grissom. He needs to knowwwww, aaahhhhhh." The pain intensified and Sara had to concentrate on her breathing.

Aunt Sophie and the doctor walked in at that moment and he quickly walked over to check Sara's dilation. "Well, you're just about there. We'll get you moved to the delivery room. Ms. Hamilton, will you be accompanying Sara?"

"Yes, I was going to coach her and Sophie was going to finish the filming." Shannon could be heard saying.

A nurse came in at that time and the doctor instructed her to get Sara moved into Delivery. He then walked out, presumably to get ready to deliver the baby.

Shannon handed the camera off to Sophie as the picture went out. It came back on and now showed Sara in the stirrups and she was drenched again in sweat and was doing her breathing as she had practiced while Shannon supported her back as she bore down. Afterwards, Sara, through gritted teeth swore up and down about the man who put her in this position. "I swear to God that bastard is going to watch that damn video, uuuuhh, son of a bitch, for putting me in this much pain." Shannon grinned down at Sara, but then grimaced with pain as Sara gripped Shannon's hand harder as another contraction rippled through her.

"Okay, Sara, don't push, when you feel like pushing, hold it in." The doctor was watching as the head crowned. The camera then moved to show the head as it started to come out. "Okay, Sara, push, push now honey."

"Don't be calling me honey, you mother fucker." But Sara did so and let out another scream as she pushed hard and then she fell back against Shannon almost in relief and the baby made herself be heard. "Waaaa, wa wa waaaaa." The doctor quickly cut the umbilical cord and then held her up for Sara to see. Sara smiled tearily and watched them move away to clean her off.

"Well, she certainly has a set of lungs on her don't she? I wonder where she gets that from." Aunt Sophie was heard to say as she moved the camera to show the doctor holding the little red bundle and placed her on a table nearby to clean her up.

He firmly wrapped her in a pink blanket and then laid her in Sara's arms as Sara weakly held onto her. A moment later, Sara passed out. The doctor took the baby and passed her to a nurse and then checked Sara's pulse and her breathing. "She's okay, her heartbeat is strong. We'll keep a close eye on her in any case. She's just worn out. Why don't you and Sophie wait in the Waiting Room until we get her settled into her own room?"

"Are you sure she's okay? You promise me nothing is wrong?" Aunt Sophie gripped his arm. She needed reassurance that she wasn't being brushed off.

"She's fine, Ms. Sidle. She's been in labor for almost twenty hours. She's worn out. We'll get her to her room so she can rest. As soon as she is settled you can go in and sit with her." The doctor soothed Sophie as much as he could and then turned back to the baby.

Sophie and Shannon walked out of the room and the video went dark. It came back on and showed Sara waking up in her room with balloons and flowers and gifts strewn all over. "Hey, where's Laredo?" She caught sight of Shannon and asked weakly.

"The nurse is about to bring her in. I'm glad you decided on her name before the delivery." Shannon spoke while continuing to film.

Sara smiled faintly. She was visibly tired and weak. "Where is Aunt Sophie?"

"I sent her home to get some rest. She'll be here in about a half hour. So, how are you feeling?"

"I'm tired." Sara grimaced as she tried to change her position on the bed. "And sore." Once she was settled in her new position, she stated firmly, "I, uh, want you to keep that promise you know, the one about telling Grissom if anything happens. It may not have happened during the birth, but if in the future anything does, I want you to take Laredo to him."

"Do you think he'll want her?" Shannon asked.

"I don't know. But he will need to be told some time and he does hold some responsibility in this even though I made the choice to keep her." Sara said as she looked past Shannon and smiled. The nurse was walking in with the baby.

Sara had turned on her side slightly and the nurse placed the baby in her right arm and on the bed. Sara looked down at her daughter with the greatest look of love showing in her eyes.

During all of this, Grissom watched enthralled. Sara however watched his face like before and saw the shimmer of tears in his eyes as he watched his baby girl being born. The tape ended and Grissom drew in a deep breath to keep the tears from falling. Sara leaned forward and looked into his eyes as he did the same to her. "Bastard? Son of a bitch?"

Sara smiled. "Well at that moment you were." Grissom drew her into a big hug. "I wish I had been there to help you, but I would have been scared to death. I probably would have pissed the doctor off with my worrying."

"I think you would've done fine, Gil. It's different seeing it from a distance than actually being there." Sara grinned up at him and ran her fingers through his hair.

"You were really scared you weren't going to make it, weren't you?" Grissom asked, himself scared to get the answer.

"I was more scared at that moment for the baby. I'm surprised they didn't have a monitor on me to watch her heartbeat and pressure." Sara's eyes stared off into open space as Grissom could see her recalling the memory. "But I wanted to make sure that if I didn't make it that you would be told."

"Sara, I don't want to pry too much into Shannon's background, but why and how was she be able to stay with you and take care of Laredo while you've been in Vegas?" Grissom asked as Sara pulled herself up to face him. This was going to be a deep conversation.

Sara glanced away for a moment before speaking. "Shannon is my best friend and has been since kindergarten. We were always on the phone or seeing each other even through college and then when I moved back here we got to together often." Sara paused in thought, and then continued. "She and I were very similar, same studies in school and then when we graduated she took a different route than me. She went in the family direction while I went on to school and then into a career."

Sara stood up because she knew that the rest of the story was going to be hard to talk about especially to Grissom. "The day I called you ended up being the worst day of my life." She turned to look at him and then turned away again. "After you said what you did about kids and we hung up, I called Shannon to talk. Just as I was about to tell her about my conversation with you and tell her I was pregnant, her husband Jack came in and started yelling at her for being on the phone and then started hitting her. I could hear it and knew if I didn't get over there it would be bad, really bad. You see, Shannon was six months pregnant. Jack, well, he didn't want the baby. I knew that and so I also knew he wouldn't care what he did to her while she was pregnant so I grabbed my gun and rushed over there. She lived about two miles away so it didn't take too long to get there. I ran inside and found her hunched over on the kitchen floor holding her stomach and she was bleeding profusely down her legs. I knew it was bad. I didn't see him until he had thrown me down onto the coffee table and it broke."

Grissom felt the bile rise up in his throat at the thought of what she went through. He wanted to hold her but her movements around the room suggested that she needed to move and not be interrupted so he stayed still on the sofa.

"I immediately reached for my gun and told him to stop and back off, but he came at me again and I hadn't noticed until he got closer that he had a knife in his hand and had positioned it in the air to strike down at me. So I," Sara hesitated. She stopped her pacing and stared at the wall facing away from Grissom. "I shot him. Dead. It was a clean shot between the eyes. He just, he just fell, face down on me. I had to push him off."

Grissom stood as he watched Sara rigidly stand facing the wall. He gathered her in his arms, encouraging her to continue as he comforted her through the memory. "I went over to Shannon and checked on her. She wasn't good so I called an ambulance and then I called the station and told them what happened. The ambulance arrived first and took Shannon away as I waited for the police to show up. When they did, they questioned me and then let me go to the hospital to be checked out. Later, they questioned me some more, but they saw that the evidence fit what I said and they closed the case."

"Shannon lost the baby, didn't she?" Grissom knew from the bleeding that she would have miscarried.

"Yes." Sara whispered in response. "And at that moment, I feared for my own child and that was when I also decided not to tell you until after she was born. My mind wouldn't allow me to take that chance. You know? But then after she was born I couldn't tell you either. It was too hard, too much time had gone by for me to just call you up and tell you."

Grissom couldn't say anything. He read between the lines of what she didn't say. That she was scared he would've reacted in the same way. That he would have hurt her. He knew, in his heart, that she didn't really believe it. Grissom was sure that at the moment of seeing Shannon losing her baby she couldn't think of anything else. What could he say? "Sara, I'm here now and I do want her and even more so, I want you in my life. Always." He gently turned her around to face him. "Let's get you both back to Vegas and start that life."

Through her tears, she looked up into his beautiful blue eyes and smiled as she realized just how much she loved this man. "Yes," she simply answered. They then both walked with arms around each other down to the bedroom and slept the most peaceful sleep either of them had ever had.


	12. Chapter 12

Sara woke up to noise from Laredo's bedroom. She looked over at Grissom who was still sound asleep and then looked at the clock and saw that she had slept almost a full eight hours. _Definitely due to Grissom being here, _she thought as she touched his face softly. She heard Laredo moving around in her room so she climbed out of bed to check on her.

Laredo, the smart little girl that she was, had taken one of the boxes that Sara had brought home the previous day and pulled it into her room and started packing her toys in it. Sara stood at the doorway watching her and tried not to make a sound. _How did I get blessed with this smart and beautiful little girl?_

Laredo looked up to see her Mommy and asked, "Is daddy seepin'?" Sara smiled and knelt down next to Laredo and the box. "Yes he is. What are you doing?"

"I want to go with daddy. He's leavin' now." Laredo said, so certainly. Sara realized that Laredo had understood what she and Grissom talked about the previous day and remembered it. She reached around her precious little girl and hugged her tight as something stuck in her throat. She barely got the words out before tears started to fall, "Oh Cricket, he's going back home but we aren't yet. We'll go in a few days. Daddy has to go back to work."

Laredo's eyes fell to the floor and with a little pout she said, "Oh." Then she started to unpack her toys but Sara stopped her and said, "Laredo, we'll go in a couple of days. I promise. I tell you what though, we can make him a good breakfast before he leaves okay?"

Laredo put her thumb in her mouth and nodded that she agreed. Sara picked her up and they walked down to the kitchen. She prepared coffee, some eggs and even bacon for Grissom, cereal for Laredo and then some coffee and toast for herself. She told Laredo to make sure the door to the bedroom was wide open and followed her down the hallway.

Grissom woke to find the bed empty and then heard voices coming down the hallway. Just as he was about to get out of bed, the door opened and he saw Laredo. She saw he was awake and ran to the bed then was soon followed by Sara, holding a tray with breakfast on it. "What's this?"

"Well, since your leaving today, we decided to let you sleep while we made breakfast." Sara said. "Prop up the pillows behind you and then I'll put the tray in your lap."

"I helped." Laredo beamed. "I love you, Daddy." Grissom smiled at her and picked her up but held her in the air above him. "Thank you and I love you too, Cricket." Laredo giggled as Grissom's hands started to tickle her and then he put her down on the bed next to him.

Sara set the tray down over his lap and sat down. She fed Laredo as she also ate her toast and drank her coffee. Laredo, the smart girl that she was, sat very still so that nothing would spill. "A little bug thought she would pack up her toys this morning so she could go with Daddy." Sara said as she spooned some food into Laredo's wide-open mouth. Laredo knew she was being talked about and looked up at her Daddy, as he had been about to take a bite of his egg. "I told her you would be working too much."

Grissom stopped at Sara's words. As he looked over at his daughter, who had turned her bright blues eyes up to him he said, "I'm sorry, Cricket. I would love to have you with me, but your Mommy's right, I have to work a lot." As he talked to her, he touched her hair and her cheek.

Laredo turned shy all of a sudden and put her head down after sticking her thumb in her mouth. "I tell you what, when you come to my place in a couple of days, I'll let you see my bugs. Okay?"

At that Laredo turned her now huge eyes up at him and asked him, "You got bugs?"

Grissom laughed. "Yes I do. Big ones even. You want to see them?" He watched as Laredo's eyes got even bigger. She nodded at him as her thumb found its home once again.

Sara watched the exchange of words with a feeling of maternal love. She realized that if anything did happen to her, Grissom would always be there to love and care for their daughter.

They finished their breakfast and Sara took the tray back down to the kitchen followed closely by Laredo as Grissom went in to take a shower. While he was in there, Sara took out the picture that Grissom had asked for and placed it in a picture frame but she also put one behind it of Laredo as a newborn. She then put it over by the door so she would be able to give it to him just as he leaves so he will have it with him when he drives home.

Sara turned to find Laredo missing. And then heard voices coming from the bedroom and smiled. Laredo wanted to be with her Daddy so much. She walked back down to the bedroom and leaned against the doorframe. She watched father and daughter partake in a conversation made for little girls. She quietly turned and walked back down the hallway and finished putting the dishes in the dishwasher.

Grissom had felt Sara lurking in the doorway and when he knew her presence was no longer there, picked up Laredo and took her into her bedroom. He wanted to get a look at her room again so he could get a few ideas for the project he had in store to work on during the next week for his other three CSIs.

After he did his surveillance of the room, Laredo pulled him over to her toys and proceeded to show him all her bugs. Grissom smiled. _The next few weeks, hell, the next several years are going to be quite an experience._ He sighed as he thought about how he needed to get on the road. "Laredo, Daddy needs to go now. You want to walk with me to my car?"

Laredo had been putting a toy on one of her shelves. She turned back to look over at Grissom as he had knelt down to her height. She looked back at her toy, a stuffed ladybug, and pulled it back out from the shelf and handed it to Grissom. He took it from her grasp and looked it over and then smiled at her as he said, "Do you want me to keep this?" Laredo nodded as her thumb snuck back into her mouth. He pulled her into a hug and told her he would make sure to keep it in a special place. Then he picked her up while still holding the toy and they walked into Sara's bedroom as he got his duffle bag and then they stepped out into the hallway. Sara walked in from the kitchen just as they reached the living room. She saw the toy Grissom held and smiled. She knew why he had it. "I should be getting on the road. Walk me out to my car?"

They walked out and he put his bag in the trunk and then turned to give both Sara and Laredo hugs. He kissed Laredo and then gave her mother a little longer kiss. Laredo, still in her father's arms, had quite the view and started to giggle with her thumb in her mouth. Sara and Grissom broke from the kiss and looked at Laredo with smiles on their faces. He started to hand Laredo to Sara, when Sara said, "Oh, wait, I almost forgot. Just a minute, I'll be right back." And she turned and went back up to the house. She reached in to the table by the door and grabbed the picture frame. She walked back down to Grissom and then took Laredo.

Grissom wore an inquisitive look on his face as she handed him the picture frame. He looked down at it and smiled. "Thank you for remembering."

"There's a surprise underneath it for when you get back. And Gil, thank you for coming here, it was much better then a phone call." It was Sara's turn to feel a little shy as she tucked her head down and against Laredo's curls.

Grissom reached out and touched her cheek softly. "I'm glad I came too. We'll have to do something special to thank Catherine for interfering," he said with a wink and a twinkle in his eye. He then turned and put the ladybug and picture frame on the passenger seat as he sat down and closed the door. He waved to them as they walked back up the sidewalk backwards watching him as he started the car and pulled out. He waved again just before he disappeared from view. He never saw Sara hugging Laredo tighter as she started letting the tears fall or Laredo clinging to her mommy's neck in a fierce hug to try and make her feel better.


	13. Chapter 13

Four days later, on a Thursday night at the Las Vegas Crime Lab, Grissom finished telling his crew that nothing had come in yet. This was the second night of nothing and most of Gil's paperwork had been finished. He did however have some projects he wanted to work on and so told everyone to catch up on some of the old and still open cases and he would let them know immediately if anything came in. Grissom hadn't told them yet about Sara and Laredo like he planned earlier in the week. He thought about doing it now, but decided not to. He had called Sara last night and they had talked for two hours including Laredo.

He walked out of the break room and headed down to his office and was followed shortly after by Nick and Warrick as they headed to the labs. Grissom, with his head down as he read a file in his hands, reached the corner and stopped as he saw something in it of interest.

"Daddy!

Grissom's head popped up with alarming speed and then Nick and Warrick watched in stunned amazement as the papers Grissom had been holding fluttered to the ground. He dropped to one knee and cried out "Cricket!" Scooping up the curly haired little girl, he stood and swung her around with her legs dangling in the air. She giggled loudly.

Nick and Warrick rubbed their eyes as they stared at the sight before them. Their faces were a sight to behold. Nick's mouth was open as if he was a black hole sucking in the air along with everything else around him. Warrick on the other hand leaned against one of the hallway's walls and nearly sank to the floor. He looked like he had just been told a terrible secret and couldn't take the news. Neither of them knew what to make of this and weren't sure if they heard correctly. _Daddy?_ They looked at each other both with their mouths open and shook their heads.

Catherine had just taken a sip of her coffee when she heard the commotion in the hallway. She stepped out after setting her coffee cup down and then peered down the hallway. She was amazed at the sight before her. She saw the speechless Nick and Warrick and then past them was Grissom smiling like the morning sunshine as he held an adorable little girl in his arms. Just as she started to walk down to them, she caught sight of Sara coming past the corner of the wall and walked up to Grissom. He pulled her into his arms and then gave her the most tender kiss she had ever been witness too. _Damn, they're quick._

She walked quietly up to Nick and Warrick and saw the expression on Nick's face. She patted him on the back with compassion and then gently put her finger under his chin and pushed his mouth closed as she said, "Don't take all the air, Nicky." And then she winked at him and Warrick and made her way to Grissom, Laredo and Sara as she said, "Two days, just two days and look at you two. And your not even married yet." She grinned when they turned to look at her.

Sara gently pulled out of Grissom's bear hug and greeted Catherine with a hug and with tears glimmering in her eyes. She pulled away from her and said, "Thank you."

"Don't mention it. You two needed a good shove in the right direction." Catherine smiled at her and then hugged her again. "Umm you might want to say something to those two behind us before they start thinking they're in dream land."

Sara looked over and past Catherine's shoulder, as did Grissom who had transferred Laredo into his other arm. Sara walked over to Nick and Warrick and gave them each a big hug. Grissom made his way over as well, followed closely by Catherine. He looked at both of the men and smiled then turned to Laredo and said, "Laredo, say hi to Uncle Nicky and Uncle Warrick."

Laredo released her thumb from her mouth with a loud pop to stretch out her hand to shake with them. "Hi Uncle Nicky and Uncle Wark."

Everyone laughed at her pronunciation of Warrick's name and she smiled too knowing they were laughing at what she said. Nick and Warrick each took turns shaking her hand and said at the same time, "Nice to meet you Laredo."

Nick had questions galore but only one that was really important. He turned to Sara and then to Grissom and asked, "She called you Daddy?"

Grissom nodded as he gave affirmation of the question. "Yes, she is my daughter. No, I didn't know until recently." He said the last in a lower voice as he looked over at Sara.

Sara smiled up at him and then turned to Nick and Warrick and said, "It's a long story."

Laredo then spoke up as she pointed at Catherine. "Who's that?"

"That's Catherine, Cricket. Tell her hi." Sara encouraged Laredo.

"Hi, Catrin." Laredo said as she also held out her hand to Catherine to shake.

Catherine said, "Hello, Laredo. You're as cute as a bug." And that caused Laredo to giggle and then make a large O with her mouth and bounce in Grissom's arms.

"Daddy, can I see your bugs?" Everyone laughed. Like father like daughter.

"You really want to see them now don't you? Okay, let's all go down there." Grissom and Sara both turned to go to his office and Catherine, Nick and Warrick followed. When they reached his office, Laredo's eyes grew to twice their size as she tried to take in all the views. She then saw the aquarium with one of his tarantula's in it. She started squirming in Grissom's arms and he put her down on the floor. She pointed up at it as she asked, "Can I touch it?"

Catherine, Nick and Warrick all wore the same expressions of incredulity on their faces. This little girl was definitely her father's daughter and she had him wrapped around her little finger.

Sara stood back a little from everyone and pulled out a camera. She wanted to get a shot of Laredo and Grissom with one of his bugs in it. Grissom had removed the top on the aquarium, pulling out his pet and then knelt down to Laredo's height. "Okay, you can't touch him but how about I put him on your hand?" Laredo nodded at him and removed her thumb from her mouth that she had started sucking on again as she watched her daddy pull out the large spider. She held out her other hand and he smoothed it out and told her not to bunch it up or it would hurt the spider. She nodded again in understanding. Grissom then laid the spider in her palm and she couldn't help but giggle at the sensation. Then a bright light went off as Sara took the picture. Grissom looked up at her and smiled. Laredo just stared at the spider so Sara had been able to capture her awe filled look as she held it in her hand, but then she started to shift her feet and coo at it with her big O mouth as it started to climb up her arm. Grissom started to chuckle at his daughter, 'she's not scared at all'.

"Daddy, pretty spider." Laredo said as she took her thumb out of her mouth and pointed at it, as it reached her shoulder. Grissom decided to pick it back up before she started to get too tickled by it and then cause it to get anxious, but he held it so she could look at it some more.

"Sara, she's adorable. How old is she?" Nicky asked as he kept his eyes on the little angel.

"She's three and a half." Sara walked forward and picked Laredo up. "Laredo, how old are you?" Laredo put up her hand with three fingers sticking up in the air. "She's exceptionally smart, but then I'm biased. Gil, it's getting late, I should head home and get her into bed. I just wanted to stop in because she couldn't wait to see you."

"Umm, well, I, umm." Gil Grissom was seen for the first time stuttering. Nick and Warrick broke out into grins and then left the office to give the two of them some privacy. Sara had turned around to look at him as Catherine finally noticed that the boys had left so she did too.

Sara gave him her look.

After he saw that the others had left he stopped stuttering. "I was thinking that since you're going to have a lot of stuff in your apartment to move around and such that maybe you would want to stay with me until we get your place reorganized."

Sara smiled, reaching out to his face to gently stroke his cheek. "I like that idea. But where will Laredo sleep? With us?"

"She could, but I also have the second bedroom." Grissom wanted to get her over to his place soon and hoped that she would. "That way she can see me and the bugs at my place."

Laredo heard him when he said he had bugs at his place and she started wriggling in her mother's arms. "Bugs. I wanna see more bugs." It was Sara's turn to giggle as she looked at the expression on her daughter's face.

"Alright, we can stay with Daddy but you have to promise me that right after you see the bugs, you are going to go to sleep. Okay?" Laredo nodded at her mother's words.

"I need to feed the ones here in the office first and then we can drive over together if you want," Grissom said as he puttered around his office. He pulled out a jar of crickets and put one down for the tarantula to ingest inside the open topped terrarium on his desk. Laredo watched with her thumb in her mouth as always, and took it all in. When the tarantula moved over the insect and started to devour it, Laredo squirmed until Sara put her down.

Grissom came around his desk and pulled Sara into a hug and then leaned back away from her to look into her face. "Thank you. I've been waiting all week for you to get here so I could ask you to stay with me. I have Saturday off so we can work on getting everything unpacked."

"Well thank you too. I didn't even think about how messy it would be at the apartment with the furniture moved. This will be a lot better." She traced the outline of his face with her fingers as she spoke. "You do realize though, that Laredo will be sleeping with us? She isn't going to want to sleep alone in a new place."

"That's alright, cause we weren't going to be doing anything but sleeping anyway." He winked at her knowing where her thoughts were leading.

During their discussion, they lost track of time and lost track of what their precious little daughter was doing. Laredo stood still as she watched the spider eat and then decided she liked it too much to leave here in the office. So she got up on the chair and mimicked her father's movements as she picked up the spider. She slowly and quietly got off the chair, putting the spider in the knapsack that her mother had been carrying earlier. She knew that Mommy or Daddy would take it home and when they did she would take the spider out, feed it and put it in a safe place so she could watch it.


	14. Chapter 14

Grissom looked down to see Laredo tugging on his pant leg with her thumb in her mouth. "Go home Daddy. I want to go home." He picked her up and tucked her into his side. Sara grabbed the knapsack and they made their way out of the office. Before leaving the building, He stopped to tell the receptionist that he would be back in about an hour but that he had his pager if he was needed.

Sara and Laredo followed him as they drove to his place. Once there, he helped Sara with their bags including the knapsack. Dropping the bags in the living room, he turned to say something but changed his mind.

She saw it, knew there was something he wasn't saying and asked, "Grissom? What was that all about?"

Grissom wasn't sure how to tell her what he and Catherine had been doing the last four days. He didn't want her to think he was being presumptuous. "I, well, I, umm, did something that I hope you'll like. I just, well do you want to see it?"

She didn't know what to make of his stammering. "Sure, what is it?"

He pulled her by her hand and led her down the hallway toward the two bedrooms. As they reached the doors, he stepped in front of her and said, "Close your eyes."

"What?"

"Close your eyes."

She acquiesced and let him pull her forward as she heard him turn the knob on the door.

"Okay, open."

Sara was stunned. She quickly glanced around the room, taking everything in. It was freshly painted and the furniture was new. It was beautiful. "Grissom, what did you do? When did you do this?"

He had transformed it from a useful guest room into a beautiful little girl's room, especially for one that liked bugs. The walls were a very light pink color and a border had been put up around the top of the walls all the way around the room. It displayed flowers with bugs on them and butterfly's flying in the air above. The furniture was white. The comforter on the single bed that occupied the room matched the border on the wall, including the bugs. A plant sat on a tall dresser and the other shorter dresser next to the bed had a picture of him, a mid-sized terrarium and a lamp on it. Toys were scattered over the dresser and stuffed toys littered the top of the pillows on the bed. All of the toys were some form of bug. Sara turned around and looked into his eyes questioningly.

"Monday, after I arrived home, I told Catherine what I was intending, what I was looking for and my ideas. She showed me where to go, even helping with the painting and the border work." He hesitated and Sara took that opportunity to pull him into a hug and then kissed him soundly. She pulled away from him and looked up to show him one of the biggest smiles he had ever seen on her lovely face. "So, you like it?"

"I love it." Sara turned to look at the bed and saw Laredo climbing up on it. He helped her up the rest of the way and then knelt down in front of her and asked, "Do you like your room, Cricket?"

Laredo looked all over, her big brown eyes taking everything in. She blinked and asked, "This is mine?" He nodded at her and she threw her arms around her Daddy's neck and gave him a great big hug. "Thank you, Daddy."

He held her a short time, pointing out little things he wanted to share with her. Several minutes later he stood back up and took Sara's hand. "Let me show you where everything is." Leading her through the door, he showed her where the linens were and where she could unpack her things since she would be there a few days.

As they were doing that, Laredo, unnoticed by the two of them, got off her bed and quietly made her way down to the living room. She opened the knapsack. The spider was right on top of the clothes, almost like it never moved. She laid her hand out flat like her Daddy had shown her and let him climb onto her hand. Her eyes were as round as saucers as she watched him and used her other hand to smother a giggle. She then quietly, but quickly, made her way back down to her room. Looking around for a place to put him, she stared at the terrarium on the nightstand. It was smaller than her Daddy's but it would work. She couldn't get up on the bed on her own with only one hand so she put the spider down on the bed and then climbed up. Picking the spider back up, she scooted over to the dresser and took the lid off of the terrarium, gently placing the spider in the center. She then replaced the lid back over it, sat back against the stuffed toys and pillows to watch it. There wasn't a whole lot of room but it would do. _It needs food._ She ran out of her room and found her Mommy and Daddy talking in the kitchen.

Grissom caught sight of her and held out his hands for her to walk over to him so he could pick her up. "What's up Cricket?"

"Where's the bugs?" she asked with enthusiasm.

"Oh, so that's what you want. Let's go back in the living room and I'll show you." He walked into the living room and she spied them immediately on the corner stand between the sofa and the recliner. She wiggled in his arms so that he would put her down which he did and then he reached in for a couple of his roaches and showed them to her, she of course was fascinated.

Laredo saw sitting lower on the bottom shelf were some bugs that looked like the ones they had fed to the spider. She looked up at him and asked, "Spider's food?"

Grissom looked down to where she pointed. He nodded to her as he looked at her face. _She is really intelligent._

Laredo popped her thumb in her mouth as she stared at the roaches and then back down to the tiny bugs that provided food for the spider. She removed her thumb so she could speak and asked, "Spider hungry again?"

"No," Grissom smiled. "He won't eat again until tomorrow morning; we don't want him to get too fat." He poked her in her tummy, making her giggle as she reached down to where he had poked her before her thumb once again made its way back to her mouth.

Sara broke in on this father and daughter moment to mention, "Bedtime, Cricket. Let's get you into your pajamas." She reached over for the knapsack that had Laredo's clothes in it and saw that it was open. She thought she had closed it before. _Maybe I didn't._

Laredo ran down to her room and climbed up on the bed and waited. After getting changed and snuggling under her covers, Grissom came in to kiss her goodnight on the forehead and said, "Sleep tight, and don't let the bed bugs bite." She giggled and giggled.

Sara also leaned down and kissed her on the forehead then reached over to the lamp that was on the dresser next to the bed and turned it on. Neither she nor Grissom noticed the spider tucked away under the foliage in the terrarium. They walked out of the bedroom together hand in hand, shutting off the ceiling light before pulling the door nearly shut.

Laredo turned over on her side with her thumb in her mouth and stared at the spider until her sleepy little eyes grew too tired to stay open. The little princess slept and dreamed of spiders and bugs and all little kinds of creepy, crawly creatures.

Grissom and Sara made their way into the living room. He spun her around gently and pulled her into a hug. "I'm so glad you're here. What happened to the plans for Saturday?"

"Laredo really missed you and so did I. We decided to come early. Shannon agreed to meet the movers late on Friday and make sure they get everything they need to. They should arrive here at just about three o'clock on Saturday." She smiled as she leaned forward to give him a kiss. They stayed like that for several minutes until Grissom broke the kiss and slowly let go of her.

"I should head back. There is some paperwork I could finish and I need to find out if anything has come in. Will you be all right until I get back?" Grissom asked quietly, unsure of what would carry into Laredo's room. He wanted to make sure Sara got a good night's sleep because he had plans for them tomorrow. He reached for his jacket and pulled out his keys, taking one off of the chain and handing it to her. "I had an extra key made for you so you wouldn't have any trouble getting in and out."

She grinned as he handed it to her, thinking _He is so into this._ Grissom grinned back as he kissed her once more before leaving. He waited outside the door to make sure she locked it. When she had, he made his way back to the Tahoe and then drove off to work.


	15. Chapter 15

Arriving back at the lab, he went in search of his team. There had been no messages at the front desk and he hadn't been paged, so he checked with them to see if they'd received any incoming cases.

Off and on throughout the slow night, Nick and Warrick would pop their heads in on Grissom for a little razzing, calling him "Daddy" and he would just respond with a smile and then go back to his paperwork. And sometimes he just picked up the picture Sara had given him and looked at it. When he'd left the house earlier, he grabbed another picture frame to put Laredo's newborn picture in it. And he spent the remainder of the night wishing for the first time that he didn't have to work.

"Can you believe it? Grissom a father, and to top it off, with Sara?" Nick sat at the break room table eating a bag of chips with a soda. Catherine had found a comfortable spot on the sofa and was reading a magazine. Warrick sat across from Nick trying to read the newspaper. He abruptly put it down when Nick broached the subject on everyone's minds.

"We always knew there was something between those two, now we know what." Warrick glanced over at Catherine who was still engrossed in her magazine. "Catherine, how long has their relationship been going on?"

Catherine looked up from her magazine with a smile. "They don't have one. Laredo was conceived from a one nighter."

"No way. You expect us to believe that with the way they watch and look at each other? Uh uh, no way." Nick wouldn't believe it for one minute.

"From what Grissom told me and let me just say it wasn't a whole lot, but it only happened once and they went their separate ways." Catherine looked from one to the other as she spoke. "When he asked her to move here it was never mentioned between them."

"I don't think I could do that." Warrick said as he looked down at the table as he spoke. "I mean sleep with someone and then work with them without talking about it again. That would be, well, cold, don't you think?"

Catherine shrugged. "I don't know, I think it would depend on the circumstances."

"Well, I just hope they don't have a split custodianship of Laredo. Those two belong together and should realize it." Nick looked at both of his teammates for confirmation of his thoughts. "And to think he's a dad now."

"Who's a dad?" Greg Sanders walked in to the break room after overhearing the last part of the team's conversation.

You could've heard a pin drop when he asked the question. No one wanted to tell Greg that Sara was now off the market.

Nick slowly turned around to face Greg. He tried to find the words to tell him but couldn't spit them out. Just when he thought he could do it, Catherine spoke up, "Greg, Sara's back in town. She has a little girl with her. It's her daughter."

"What? You're kidding me aren't you?" Greg laughed. "That's a good one Catherine, real good."

Nick stood up and put his hand out to console Greg as he said, "She really does have a daughter, Greg. And Grissom is the father. They were here just a little while ago, but you went for food so you weren't here to see them."

Greg shook his head as he looked from one to the other and then over at Warrick. "When did this happen? And what do you mean? Sara never had a daughter, at least she never spoke of one and mothers always talk about their kids and she never did." Nick pushed Greg over to a chair and he sank into it as Catherine filled him in on the Grissom and Sara story.

Later, Grissom walked by the lab and saw a very defeated looking Greg as he stared off into space. He stepped in and asked the young tech what he was doing. Greg turned to him, and plastered on a smile as he said, "I hear congratulations are in order."

"You've heard? From the others I take it?" Grissom asked and was bemused at the way he was trying to hold back his emotions. Greg nodded and turned to go back to processing some samples left from the day shift. "Greg I was wondering if you would like to meet Laredo? I was going to ask everyone if breakfast would be a good time to get together."

Greg smiled a little brighter this time. "I would like that. Thanks, Gris."

Grissom nodded and then went to find the rest of his team to see how they would feel about it. He found each of them and proposed the breakfast idea to them. They all agreed to meet for breakfast after shift was over.

When shift was finally through, Grissom started to put things away and then pulled out a jar of bugs to feed to his tarantula. It wasn't there. He quickly turned and surveyed the office, then after not seeing his pet, he walked over to his shelving units and looked carefully in between the jars and other items stored there. He still didn't see it.

Catherine popped her head in and saw the worried look on Grissom's face. "Gris, is something amiss?" Grissom didn't hear her. "Yo, Grissom, what's going on, is something wrong?" He heard her that time.

Grissom turned around quickly and told her, "It's gone."

"What's gone?"

"My tarantula."

Catherine slowly stepped backwards out of the office all the while looking furtively around on the floor. "When did you last have it?" It was a mother's question.

Grissom stopped a moment and stood there in thought. "I fed it with Laredo here in the terrarium." He looked over at the terrarium on his desk. It wasn't there so he looked closely at the papers to see if it might be underneath any, but he didn't see it anywhere. Then it struck him. He smiled and started laughing. Catherine gave him an impatient look and thought he had lost his mind. He saw the look on her face and told her what he thought had happened.

Grissom drove home to get Sara and Laredo, who were both now taking a shower. He could hear Sara singing and playing with Laredo. He quickly looked around to find the spider but after a few minutes he didn't see it anywhere and when he was about to go down the hallway, Sara and Laredo came out of the bathroom. Grissom's mouth hit the floor.

On seeing him, Sara greeted him with a smile. "Oh, you're home. I was going to make breakfast. Did you want anything?" She slowly approached him and poor Grissom started to get antsy. Sara only had a towel wrapped around her lithe figure. When she finally reached him and registered the expression on his face, she smiled and gently closed his mouth for him since he couldn't find the strength to do so. "Get used to it, Gil." Then she turned and walked back down the hallway to the bedroom and closed the door behind her.

He shook his head and grinned. _This is going to be torture, fun, but torture._ Laredo came running out partially dressed, only wearing her shirt and underpants. "Daddy!" she yelled as she ran into his leg and hugged it. He leaned down and picked her up as he tried to decide if he should ask her straight out about the spider or wait and see if she mentioned it. _But then again, maybe I'll just watch her and see if she knows where it is. _ He hugged her one more time and then set her back on her feet before he walked into the kitchen and dining area. He turned the corner and watched to see what she would do. She stood staring at the bugs with her thumb in her mouth as always. She then looked behind her to see if anyone was watching and Grissom tucked his head back behind the wall just in time. Slowly peering around the corner again, he watched his beautiful and very smart little girl take the jar of bugs and open it. He never screwed it on tight since he wasn't worried about them getting out so it was very easy for her to open. She took a hold of one squirming bug and closed her hand around it. She then put the lid back on but didn't twist it on since her other hand was full. She very carefully picked up the jar with her one small hand and put it back on the shelf then ran down to her room, almost bowling over Sara as she came out of Grissom's bedroom now fully dressed. Sara, her interest now piqued, watched Laredo run into her room and started to go after her to see what she was doing when a hand grabbed her by the elbow and stopped her. She turned and saw Grissom with his finger in front of his mouth signaling her to be quiet. They tiptoed up to Laredo's bedroom and peeked in through the partially shut door. It was now Sara's turn to drop her mouth to the floor as she watched Laredo drop the bug into the terrarium and put the lid back on, then she stood, thumb in her mouth, watching as the spider came out from hiding and devoured the bug.

Sara took a step toward the door, but Grissom with his arm now around her waist, kept her from going in and turned her around to walk down to the living room. When they reached the living room, Sara turned around to face him. "I can't believe you put that spider in her room. She's only three and a half years old; she shouldn't be playing with them. It's too dangerous."

"Sara, stop for a second."

Grissom was grinning and shecouldn't figure out why. _This isn't funny._ Grissom reached up and touched her face as he said, "I didn't bring it home and I didn't put it in her room."

"Then how did it get there?" she asked.

"I believe... she brought it home." He stopped her before she could cut in. "And she fed him on her own."

"What?"

"She must have brought it, I don't know, maybe in the knapsack you had with you, and put it in there when we weren't watching her in my office. She's had it here all night." Grissom tried to get Sara to look at it the way he was.

"She's only three and a half and-" Sara slowly sat down on the sofa as she kept her eyes on Grissom's face as she began to understand. "The knapsack was open last night and I distinctly remembered shutting it."

"We seem to have created a very intelligent little girl."

"And sneaky," she grimaced.

He sat next to her and watched her facial expressions change as she processed the information. Laredo chose at that moment to come running into the living room and into her mother's lap. Sara stared at her for a moment as she realized that Laredo was oblivious to what they'd figured out. Making sure she had eye contact with Laredo, she asked, "Honey, why did you take that bug into your room?"

"To feed the spider." Laredo said with all the innocence of her age.

"Where did you get the spider?"

"From Daddy's work?" Laredo looked at her Mommy, her eyes glistening from the excitement of feeding the spider until she saw that her Mommy wasn't happy. "Did I do somtin' bad, Mommy?"

"Well, is that spider yours?"

"No."

"Did you ask Daddy if you could bring it home?"

"No."

"So what do you think?"

Laredo thought for a moment as she looked at her Mommy's face. "I shoulda asked."

"Yes you should have. Do you think you should keep it?"

Laredo looked at her Mommy and Daddy and then popped her thumb in her mouth as she sat their and thought about it. It took several minutes before she said anything. "Yes, cause then Daddy can teach me about it?"

Grissom couldn't contain his laughter anymore. Sara hugged her tightly as she tried desperately to hold back her own laughter. Poor Laredo didn't know what to think now.

Sara had tears in her eyes as she looked again at Laredo whose eyes tripled in size. She slowly stuck her thumb back in her mouth. "I think you are going to have to ask Daddy about that."

Grissom sat back up and he too was still laughing. "Daddy, can I keep him?"

As he looked into his daughter's eyes he knew he could never tell her no. "Yes, but on one condition. He has to stay in your room. You can't take him to Mommy's apartment. Okay?"

Laredo thought that over and then said, "Deal."

That set Grissom off laughing again until he saw Sara's face and knew she wasn't sure about the arrangement. "As soon as I saw her feed the spider on her own, I had already decided to let her keep him. If at her age she can figure that out, then she can certainly learn how to take care of him and besides, he'll be here and not at your place."

Sara reluctantly nodded in agreement and Laredo bounced with excitement. "Thank you Mommy. And Daddy."

Grissom stood up as he said, "We are going to go out for breakfast. The team is going to meet us at the diner. Greg's coming too."

At the mention of his name, Sara looked up and asked, "Who told him?"

Grissom knew Sara was worried about Greg's taking the news. "I believe Nick and Warrick and possibly Catherine did. I don't think he took it very well. But he did seem eager to meet Laredo."

She grimaced. The thought of Greg finding out carelessly was not how she'd wanted him to. She hoped her teammates had had the decency to let him down easy.

"Laredo let's get you dressed and then we can get something to eat." She carried Laredo into the bedroom and changed her out of what Laredo had tried to put on and decided to get her into some little blue jean overalls and a pink t-shirt with little tennis shoes. She finished Laredo's look with barrettes in her hair to keep the many curls on her head off of her face and then she was finally able to finish her own hair.

They walked out of the house just like a normal family going on an outing.


	16. Chapter 16

They transferred Laredo's car seat into Grissom's Tahoe and then drove to the restaurant. Grissom called ahead to let the others know they were running a little late. After they arrived, they easily located the group at a large semi-circular booth. Nick and Warrick got out and let Sara, Grissom and Laredo have the one side of the booth while the others took the back of the booth and the other side. Sara scooted in toward the middle and Laredo was positioned between her and Grissom. All this time, Greg sat and stared at Laredo. There was no doubt in his mind that she was Grissom's daughter. While Greg watched her, Sara watched him.

Everyone was surprised to hear Laredo say hi to Uncle Nicky, Uncle Wark and Aunt Catrin. She remembered their names and who they belonged to. Then she looked at Greg and didn't know who he was so she looked at her Mommy and as she pointed at Greg, asking, "Who's that?"

"That's Uncle Greg." Sara replied to her and then watched as her daughter leaned across the table with her hand out.

Greg took it and gingerly shook with her and said hi to her too. Then she sat back with her knees up and thumb in her mouth again. Greg smiled. _She's adorable._

"So, Gris, did you find what you were looking for this morning?" Catherine asked as she glanced down at Laredo.

Grissom smiled as he also glanced to look at his daughter. "Yes I did. The spider was at my place."

Laredo looked up at her Daddy when he spoke and responded to his statement, "Daddy's spider is in my room."

Catherine chuckled and everyone else laughed. "Tell us what happened, Gris."

He filled them in but was interrupted part way through by the waitress to take their orders. After she left, Grissom continued his story telling of his daughter's escapades the night before and that morning.

Warrick sat back after listening to Grissom and smiled. "Laredo, you are just too smart for your own good. You know that don't you?"

Laredo's thumb popped out of her mouth as she replied, "Yep!" She said it so assuredly that Greg almost spit out the drink of water he had just taken. Then Laredo leaned up to her Daddy and quietly said, "Daddy, I gotta go potty." Grissom heard very well what she said and knew that his daughter wanted him to take her.

Sara heard it also and was about to intervene when Grissom shook his head toward her and then gently grabbed his daughter by the hand and led her off to the restroom. The others just stared after them.

Catherine winked at Sara and flashed her a knowing smile. Sara's feelings were clearly visible on her face. She was ecstatic, dumbfounded and awestruck all in the same expression.

As Grissom and Laredo stepped back out of the restroom, they were stopped by a familiar voice in a booth just down from where they'd been sitting. "Grissom is that your niece?"

Grissom turned toward the voice and saw Ecklie leaning on the table with a cup of coffee in his hand.

"Hello, Ecklie. Aren't you supposed to be at work or is this your day off?" Grissom responded.

"No, it's my day off. So, who is the little girl clinging to you?" he asked again. He considered the thought that maybe Grissom was hedging and didn't want to tell him.

"This here is Laredo. Laredo that man is Conrad." Grissom introduced them and then let go of Laredo's hand as he anticipated her movements. Laredo took her thumb out of her mouth and reached forward to shake his hand.

Ecklie's face betrayed the shock he felt. He reached out and grasped her hand softly and then they shook as Laredo greeted him, "Hello, Conrad." She pulled her hand back and grabbed onto Grissom hand again then promptly replaced her thumb in her mouth. She continued to stare at the new man even as Ecklie's face turned back up to Grissom.

"Uh, Grissom, is she related to you? She kind of resembles you in a way." Ecklie looked back down at Laredo, studying her to determine if his judgment was correct.

"She is Conrad, Laredo is my daughter and before you say anything else, no, I didn't know until about a week and a half ago." Grissom clipped his words conveying that he didn't want to argue with him.

"Wow, your daughter. I bet that was quite a shock. How does Sara feel about this? Or does she even know?" Ecklie asked congenially rather than with his normal sneering or belligerence.

Grissom wasn't sure how to respond to that without getting mad and with Laredo there that wasn't an option. However his attempt at speech was abruptly interrupted by an addition to the conversation. "I'm fine with it, Ecklie, especially since she is my daughter as well." Sara interjected as she stepped up to Grissom and Laredo's side. Laredo turned to her and reached up for her to pick her up, "Mommy." Sara leaned down to tell her to run back down to their booth and wait with Aunt Catherine. She watched protectively as her daughter ran down directly to the booth.

"Are you going to create a problem in regard to this Ecklie?" she asked, standing with her arms crossed over her chest.

Ecklie leaned back against his seat and smiled up at her and Grissom, "Laredo is a darling. You two have been pining around the lab for each other so much it started to get annoying." He caught them off guard and knew it. He pulled out his wallet and placed some money on the table then stood and faced them at eye level. "As long as your private lives don't interfere with your work or especially mine, why should I care? I just hope things work out for the both of you because it would be nice to see someone have a workable private life outside of the lab. It doesn't happen very often." He nodded at them both and then walked off leaving them in stunned silence.

Conrad Ecklie grinned as he approached the booth that held the rest of the nightshift team with Laredo. To complete everyone's surprise, he waved and made a cutesy face at Laredo. She did the same but yelled out, "Bye, Conrad." He smiled to himself and then walked out of the restaurant again leaving them in complete astonishment.

Grissom and Sara arrived back at the table after regaining their composure.

Catherine looked at both of them as well as the others and asked, "Does anyone know what happened to our Ecklie? I swear to God that was not him in that body."

Warrick directed a question to Grissom. "What happened down there? What was said?"

Grissom shook his head and then repeated the conversation up to Sara's entrance and then Sara finished the story. There wasn't anything to say, they were all too stunned by his actions.

Catherine broke the silence and directed the conversation to another subject. "Do you need help today at your apartment? Eddie is picking up Lindsay after school so I can help out if you need it."

They guys also offered to help and so it was decided that after they finished eating they would head over to her apartment and help rearrange the furniture to make room for the items being brought down the next day.

The waitress arrived with their food and then after she left, the conversation turned quiet as everyone dug into their meals. Laredo had changed position as everyone had been talking and now knelt up against the table and reached for more syrup to put on her dollar pancakes. Grissom reached out and snagged the syrup before she did and then poured some for her. It all happened absentmindedly as he began to discuss the move. It didn't however go unnoticed by the others and you could see multiple smirks around the table. He was a natural born father.

After breakfast was over they headed out to Sara's apartment and took a look around the rooms. Nick and Warrick listened to Sara as she described where she wanted the furniture placed in the living room as well as the furniture that currently occupied the second bedroom. Grissom and Catherine stood back and listened as well, but talked softly between them as Grissom described Sara and Laredo's reactions to the renovation of his second bedroom.

Laredo had found a perch for herself on the coffee table but didn't go unnoticed as Greg walked over and squatted down in front of her. "So, Laredo, you like bugs, huh?" He asked in a teasingly, quiet voice. Laredo, with her permanent filler for her mouth in its place, nodded and grinned. "How about we let the big guys help Mommy and you and I can go hunt some of those bugs outside and see what we can find. You want to do that?"

Laredo nodded eagerly, popping her thumb out of her mouth and said, "Yes. Let's find bugs." So she grabbed Greg's hand and pulled him to the door.

A little later as Nick and Warrick were moving the computer and other electronic items out of the second room, Sara took note of the two missing people. "Where is Greg and Laredo?" She looked around the living room at those present.

Catherine looked around and then remembered. "Wait, I think I saw Laredo pulling Greg toward the door. She probably wanted to go outside."

Grissom and Sara looked at each other and grinned as it registered. "Bugs," they both said. Everyone softly chuckled and then went back to the work at hand.

Elsewhere, Greg and Laredo would've been found at that given moment lying on the grass in the common area of the apartment complex as they watched a community of ants working around their mound. All Greg could do was stare at the little girl that was such an uncanny mixture of Sara and Grissom. He sighed in surrender. It seemed that Grissom and Sara were destined to be together and he would have to live with it. He remembered seeing them enter at the restaurant and how he thought they looked like a truly well founded family. They weren't though and if it meant their happiness for them to be just that, he would do everything in his power to ensure they got it.

A couple of hours later, Laredo and Greg walked back in to a totally different looking apartment. He held Laredo's hand until Sara caught sight of them and squatted down as her daughter ran to her. "Did you have fun outside with Uncle Greg?"

"Yep, we found bugs. Ants working on their home." Laredo beamed and was wildly animated as she tried, in her small amount of vocabulary, to describe them. "There was a butterf'y too and a kitty tried to catch it but missed when it flew up high." The look on her face was filled with awe as she talked. Sara tried to smooth her hair down as it had come out of the barrettes from her activity out side. She had so many curls that they seemed to just go everywhere.

"Well, you must have had fun. You got dirt all over you." Sara smiled at her as she considered how much fun she must have had. "We need to get you cleaned up and in some clean clothes, Cricket." Sara poked her in her tummy and set her off giggling.

"Why don't we all head over to my place so you can take care of her and we can just sit and relax maybe have a couple beers or something? We could grill out if everyone is up for it." Grissom looked at each member of his team to see if anyone didn't want to do that then he again looked at Sara. "Did you bring any of those videos or pictures with you?"

"Yes I did. We could watch them this afternoon if anyone wants to." Sara grinned at Grissom's suggestion. He was becoming a great father. Everyone grabbed whatever they had brought with them, if anything, and then they headed over to Grissom's for lunch and possibly dinner, to watch videos.


	17. Chapter 17

It was picture perfect. Sara unbuckled Laredo from her car seat as Grissom came around to open the door to help Laredo. She nearly jumped into his awaiting arms and took her inside. Catherine pulled up and was soon followed by Nick, Warrick and Greg.

Nick, Warrick and Catherine walked to the house, while Sara popped the trunk and then took out a box full of videos and other assorted items. Just as she tried to close the trunk, the box was grabbed from her arms and the sudden action startled her. A grinning Greg winked at her and said, "I got it, Sara."

"Thanks Greg but next time let me know you're there. You nearly scared me to death." Sara smiled at him to show she wasn't mad. "Let's head inside." They walked back to the house and were greeted by an interesting scene as Greg placed the box on the floor.

Laredo was holding her tarantula, correctly, out toward Catherine who was trying to convince Laredo that she really didn't like spiders. Laredo, not understanding her, was trying to push it toward her again when Grissom stepped in and squatted next to her. "Cricket, some people just don't like them or other bugs either." He watched her face screw up in what could only be described as a cross between a Grissom and Sara look. She just didn't get it. "I know. Sometimes Daddy doesn't understand it either. Come with me so we can put him back in his terrarium." He grabbed her other hand and drew her back to her bedroom to put the spider away in its habitat.

Sara noticed that Nick and Warrick were laughing so hard that no sound was coming out and Catherine was trying to regain her composure. Catherine was not one that cared too much for spiders, especially when they were that size. She caught sight of Sara and the interested look on her face. "Don't go there Sara. She's your daughter but I swear she is a miniature female version of Grissom."

Grissom came back out with a yawning Laredo in tow behind him. Sara took a look at her watch and realized that Laredo would be ready to eat and then she could lay her down for a nap. "Cricket, let's get you something to eat." Laredo followed her into the kitchen.

Grissom sat down and rummaged through the box that Sara and Greg brought in and pulled out a tape he had seen before. "Nick, why don't you pop this one in and I'll get us some beers and then get things ready for grilling." He turned and headed for the kitchen where Sara could be found heating something in the microwave. "You know she could take her nap and then eat with the rest of us."

Sara knew he didn't like microwaves because usually it was used for junk food and that he was thinking that whatever was in the microwave probably wasn't healthy. "I'm warming up some of your stew that I found in the freezer. She needs to eat before I lay her down or she won't sleep. She sleeps better with something in her tummy."

Grissom smiled. "Well that's something for me to remember when I watch her alone. I wouldn't have known that." He spoke quietly and then wrapped his arms around her as they both stared at the microwave and the food spinning round and round and round.

"Aren't you supposed to be getting something on the grill?" Sara said as she turned around to face him and started to run her hand through his curls. He slowly leaned down and kissed her, letting his tongue skim over her lips. She opened for him and allowed the invasion.

"Uhmm." Catherine cleared her throat as she stood at the island in the kitchen. "I don't suppose you two need any help in the kitchen do you?" Sara pushed Grissom away and actually blushed. This was the first time any of the crew had seen the two of them in an intimate moment.

Grissom smiled then walked over to the fridge, grabbed four beers and handed them to Catherine. "Here, give these to the guys." He winked at her and watched her go back into the living room but his attention was drawn to Greg, watching Sara and Laredo. They were at the table and Sara was keeping an eye on Laredo as she ate. He could tell that his daughter had charmed Greg by the expression he saw on his face. Grissom stepped over to the table and leaned down to whisper in Sara's ear. "When you get done feeding her, why don't you ask Greg to rock her to sleep? I think he would appreciate the trust shown in him."

Sara leaned back to take a glance around Grissom at Greg and found him watching them. He turned quickly back at the television, pretending not to have been staring. "I think that would be a good idea. He seems to be quite enthralled by everything she does, doesn't he?" They smiled.

When Laredo finished eating, Sara cleaned off her face then did her mushy kiss on her neck and sent her into giggles again which made everyone in the living room turn to stare at them. She squatted down in front of her after putting Laredo on the floor and asked, "Cricket, Mommy has to help Daddy with getting dinner for everyone else. Would you mind if Uncle Greg rocked you to sleep for your nap?" Laredo stuck her thumb in her mouth and then eyed Greg, considering what her mommy asked. She nodded and then ran over to Greg. Greg hoisted her onto his lap and then cradled her back against his chest as they turned to watch the video.

Sara walked to the island in the kitchen and asked Grissom what he wanted her to do. He pointed at the vegetables and asked her to chop them up while he prepared the meat. After several minutes of chopping, Sara glanced out into the living room and saw that Laredo had indeed fallen asleep already. She cleaned off her hands then walked out to Greg and quietly gathered sleeping child into her arms. Before walking off, she mouthed a 'thank you' to Greg.

Catherine took the opportunity to walk into the kitchen to talk to Grissom. "So, what have you two got planned for tomorrow night?" She smirked at him, having something up her sleeve.

Grissom replied with disinterest. "Nothing actually, since the movers will be here, we'll have plenty to do and probably tired after. Why? What were you thinking?" He eyed her suspiciously as he saw the glint in her eyes.

"Well I was just thinking that, if you two wanted to maybe go out, ya know, for dinner, I could watch Laredo for you. I have tomorrow night off and had planned on helping Sara with the unpacking since I don't have Lindsay this weekend either." Catherine wanted so much for the two of them to make it work that she would do anything to get them on that first date.

Grissom smiled then reminded Catherine about Laredo. "Remember she likes spiders and bugs, Catherine. How are you going to keep her preoccupied without them?"

Catherine hadn't thought about that but considered for a moment that the little girl had to have other interests as well. "Well does she like books and videos?"

Grissom smiled. "Yes she does. I tell you what, you ask Sara and if she wants to have an evening out, without Laredo, then you can baby-sit." He would love to have the opportunity to take Sara out and if Catherine was all that willing, he would be glad to let her volunteer.

Sara walked in, saw the look on their faces and had to wonder what they were talking about. "What's going on with you two and those grins? What have you got up your sleeves?"

Catherine turned to her and outlined her plan for the next day. Sara continued with her vegetable chopping while Catherine talked. When Catherine finished laying out her plan, Sara stopped and without blinking she said, "Yes, I would love that. You can take her for the evening and we'll have a night out. But get used to it because you know you're going to be asked often to baby-sit."

Grissom kissed her on the cheek as he walked past to the patio, meat in hand for the grill. Sara and Catherine finished up the vegetables, but decided to add a green salad to the meal. They talked quietly amongst themselves when the guys came in and headed out to talk with Grissom while he watched over the grill.

Later that afternoon when they finished eating, Catherine and the boys headed off to get some sleep before going into work. Laredo woke up as they were leaving and came out as they drove off. Sara, needing to keep her preoccupied while Grissom tried to get some sleep, decided to go shopping for groceries. _Maybe even get a new outfit for tomorrow night._ She needed something nice to wear when she went out with Grissom. She smiled as she thought about how the next few months were going to be interesting for the three of them.


	18. Chapter 18

Grissom woke to the smell of something cooking. _Whatever it is it smells delicious._ He considered momentarily about checking on what was happening in the kitchen, but chose instead to jump in the shower and dress for work. A half hour later, he walked out to his kitchen to find Sara working on something at the counter and then when he looked down, Laredo was on the floor in front of the island, crawling around, watching the spider slowly make it's way across the floor. He stood in the doorway and watched them for several minutes. It was certainly an interesting sight, one that he never thought he would ever see. He had a family, maybe not in name, but definitely a family. It then dawned on him that he would have to tell his mother about them. _Sara might feel awkward though since we don't have a commitment and she wouldn't be able to communicate directly with Mom._ He made a quick decision. "Sara?"

She spun around quickly at the sound of his voice. "You're up. I was just getting ready to set the table for dinner and then I was going to wake you." She stepped over to him and hugged him.

"What are you making?" he asked as he sniffed the air. "It certainly smells good."

"Just a little something. It's meatless, I hope you don't mind." Sara grinned up at him as she remembered his reaction to the vegetarian lasagna. He really loved it, but was surprised when he realized it was absent the meat.

"I don't mind at all. If I want meat in my diet, I'll make it myself so you don't have to worry about it." He kissed her on her forehead and then asked, "I was wondering. Would you want to meet my mother sometime soon? I know she'd really love to meet you and Laredo."

Sara's eyes grew very large at the thought of what he proposed. "I, umm, well, yes I would, but would you interpret for us?"

"Well one, she can read lips, and two, I thought maybe I could start teaching you ASL, maybe even Laredo too." Grissom saw the smile light up Sara's face as she nodded while he spoke. Her expression was reminiscent of their daughter.

She wanted to learn and she really wanted to meet his mother. "I'd like that. I think Laredo would too. She just seems to soak up everything."

"Daddy, Daddy, don't move." Laredo yelled at him. Grissom looked down and saw that the spider had made its way over to his shoe and was tentatively feeling his foot to climb up on it. Laredo quickly came over and scooped him up. She stood there staring up at her Daddy with a look of dismay on her face. He squatted down to her eye level but before he could say anything Laredo quickly said, "I'm sorry, Daddy. I didn't mean to lose him. I was watching you and Mommy talkin' and then I forgot him. I'm sorry."

He could see she was almost ready to cry as the tears started to build up in her tiny blue eyes. But he knew he couldn't just let it slide. As a father, he would have to let her know that there were consequences to her actions. "Laredo, something bad could have happened to the spider. I think we should put him back in his home and then we need to make a deal that you can't take him out by yourself anymore." As he spoke, a tiny tear escaped her eye, he cupped her little face with his large hand and gently wiped the tear away. "From now on, Cricket, I need to be with you if you take him out. Okay? And maybe he should just get used to his home for the next few days. No taking him out until I say, okay?"

Laredo, still holding onto the spider, looked over at it in her hand and then glanced back up at her daddy and asked, "You're not takin' him away? I can still keep him?"

"Yes, you can, but only if you do as I say." He felt his heart breaking as he tried to give Laredo her punishment. But he was soon revived when he saw the smile light up her face.

"Thank you, Daddy and I promise I won't. I'm sorry, Daddy." She beamed once again as she pulled away from him and then headed down to her bedroom to put the spider in its home.

He stood back up and met Sara's eyes. She had started to cry too. "Sara, what's wrong? Did I handle that wrong?"

"No, you were perfect. You couldn't have done better." She hugged him close and then stepped away when Laredo came running back.

"He's home now, Daddy. Just like you said." She smiled up at her Daddy and he leaned down to pick her up.

"Dinner is ready, so why don't you two set the table and I'll get dinner on." Sara turned and wiped the tears from her eyes as she walked back to the counter.

Later that night after Grissom left for work, Sara pulled out her outfit for her night with Grissom. "So Cricket," She held up the dress to her for Laredo to look at. "You think Daddy will like this dress?" Laredo, with her mouth full of her thumb, smiled and nodded at her Mommy and then started to giggle as Sara twirled with the dress pressed up against her. She pulled it away as she looked at it again then smiled and hung it up in the closet.

"Okay, cricket, let's go get some popcorn and we'll watch that video we got today." Laredo bounced on the bed until her Mommy picked her up and they headed down to watch the video about big Tarantula spiders.

The next morning, Grissom called to let them know he was going to be late and would have to meet them at her apartment. Sara and Laredo then headed off without him and awaited the truck to arrive. It was a good thing they got there when they did because the movers arrived early. So, by the time Grissom and Catherine arrived, most of the movers' duties were done which just left the unpacking. Grissom took charge of Laredo and went to get something for everyone to eat while Sara, with Catherine's help dug into unpacking and arranging the furniture in Laredo's bedroom.

They stopped when Grissom and Laredo came back. After quickly eating, they continued unpacking and since there really wasn't all that much, they were done by the end of the afternoon. Sara went into her bedroom to find Grissom and Laredo curled up fast asleep. Catherine stepped in behind her and saw the scene as well.

Quietly shutting the door behind them, they walked into the living room, sat down on the sofa and fell into a discussion about the night ahead. She told her about the outfit she picked up. "Do you think maybe you could help me with my hair? I was thinking of putting it up with some curls, you know, something a bit more feminine, to go with the dress." As she spoke, she drew up her hair to help Catherine visualize it.

Catherine didn't need the help. She knew exactly what the look was that Sara wanted to achieve. They just needed to get started on it. "Why don't you head over to Grissom's and I'll meet you there when they wake up? That way you can get showered and so forth then when we get there, all you'll have left to do is your hair." Sara jumped up, grabbed her keys and was about to leave when Catherine reminded her that they would need the car seat. They both left the apartment and got the car seat exchanged into Grissom's Tahoe then Sara left.

An hour later, Grissom woke to find Laredo staring at him as she lay facing him with her thumb in her mouth. He hadn't meant to sleep, just to get Laredo down for a nap. They both got up and walked out into the living room to find Catherine on the couch, reading. She looked up and said, "I was just about to wake you both."

"Where's Sara?" Grissom looked around and in the kitchen for her.

"She's getting ready for your date tonight at your place. We're supposed to head over there as soon as you two woke up, so let's get going." Catherine put the magazine down, grabbed her purse and led the way out of the apartment.

Sara was just finishing her make-up when they walked into the house. Grissom headed down to the bedroom and immediately started to fish around for something to wear when he spotted her dress hanging in the closet. He smiled then went to the bathroom to take his shower and shave. Catherine and Laredo found Sara in Laredo's bedroom as she finished putting on her lipstick. Sara turned to both of them and smiled as she sighed in desperation. "How do I look?"

Catherine smiled at her apprehension. "Nothing like a first date, huh? Your make-up is great, so we just need to do your hair now." Catherine saw that the curling iron was already on and that all she needed to do was to prepare Sara's hair then blow-dry it. They set to work and after about a half hour they were done. Her hair was pulled up with pins holding the curls in place allowing the ringlets to fall haphazardly down the back of her head. Catherine finished and pronounced her done with a quick spray of hairspray.

Sara turned back and forth as she smiled. "This looks great, Catherine. Thank you. For everything." It was then that she heard Grissom rummaging around in his drawers. She looked over at Catherine. "I don't want him to see me until I'm dressed completely. Would you mind getting my dress from his closet?"

Catherine knocked on the bedroom door. Grissom opened the door but didn't get to say anything when Catherine asked for Sara's dress in the closet. He got but asked, "Is she almost ready then?"

"Yep, so hurry up bug man." Catherine snickered and then entered Laredo's bedroom.

Sara quickly donned the dress and then stepped into her heels. She turned around for Catherine to comment on it. "What do you think?"

Catherine smiled. "It's perfect. You two will actually match tonight."

Sara looked at her stunned. "You're joking right?"

"Nope. Grissom probably saw the dress when he decided on what to wear." Catherine couldn't help but keep the smile on her face.

Sara bit her bottom lip as she thought about that. "Well, okay, I'm ready. I told Laredo that you are going to stay with her until we get home."

Laredo looked up at her Mommy and smiled then held onto Aunt Catrin's hand. "Aunt Catrin is going to baby-sit me."

"Yes, I am and we are going to have some fun." She picked her up as she spoke. "Ready Sara?"

Sara was visibly nervous. "As ready as I'll ever be. Let's go." She opened the door then stepped out into the hallway with her daughter and friend following behind.


	19. Chapter 19

Grissom stood in the living room waiting for Sara to finish dressing. He had made reservations for seven at a quiet, ambience filled Italian restaurant and for a date such as theirs, it would be perfect. He straightened his jacket then turned when he heard them step out of the bedroom and walk down the hallway. A smile slowly, like a caterpillar, crept up his face. _God she's beautiful._ He took in a deep breath and took in the scent of her as she approached. He thought he could smell a hint of jasmine and maybe some lavender. It was quite a mixture, mingled with her own body chemistry. Sara steadily made her way to him and when she stepped into his personal space she touched his arm and asked, "Are you ready?" Then her smile met his and they both turned to say goodnight to their daughter and close friend.

Catherine and Laredo watched them walk to Sara's car. Laredo laid her head against Catherine's shoulder and then said, "Mommy pretty."

Catherine smiled. "Yes, she is. I think your Daddy is twitter-pated again?" Laredo quickly looked up at her with an expression of curiosity. She had heard a very different word.

Laredo tried in earnest to say the word, "Tw, twipated?" Catherine laughed and began tickling Laredo mercilessly as they both sat on the sofa. Catherine would continuously help Laredo try to pronounce that very funny and different word all night long.

When Grissom and Sara began to drive away, he tuned in the radio to a classical station and quickly set their mood for the night. Grissom glanced over to her and took in her dress and hair again. All he could think was how stunning she was. He had always seen her as a woman but tonight his senses were electrified at the sight of her. She caught his eyes and knew what he was doing. She smiled then asked, "So, where are we headed?"

"There is a small, quiet, little known restaurant on the other side of town and I thought it would be a nice place to start. Italian." Grissom replied as he watched her hand fidgeting with the skirt on her dress. _She's just as nervous._ He grinned.

"Yes, that'll be nice." Sara started to chew on her bottom lip and wondered why her heart was racing so fast and she couldn't seem to sit still. _It's Grissom for crying out loud._ She blinked. _No, it's not, it's Gil._ Her mind raced as she realized that there really was a difference. She began to fiddle with the skirt of her dress again when she felt warmth envelope it. She stared down at her lap and saw Grissom's hand holding hers. She tilted her head slightly to see him staring ahead at the road then he turned to look into her eyes. Suddenly, she didn't feel the need to be touching her skirt anymore.

When they reached the restaurant, Grissom parked close to the front door and swiftly made his way over to help her out of the car. As she stood, the smile on her face appeared to grow and her eyes sparkled with the shine of the setting sun. They walked into the restaurant hand in hand.

The hostess approached and smiled at the two of them. "Dr. Grissom, welcome back again. We have the table you requested waiting for you if you will follow me." When she turned, the hostess' grin broadened. _He's found the one._ She was very happy for the lonely man that always came alone.

When they were seated, Sara looked around and Grissom could see she was wondering where the menus were. "I hope you don't mind. I already told them what we would be having." And immediately after saying that, a waitress approached with a bottle of wine and poured the drink into each of their glasses.

"Gil?" Sara's question went unfinished as Grissom reached across the table and held her hand.

"Sara, I have for several years, tried to envision what I thought our first official date would be like. I've wanted to do this for such a long time but never thought I would be allowed the pleasure of fulfilling it. You've always been a bright spot in my life and now it has grown to encompass my world. I just want you to enjoy tonight." He watched as her eyes shimmered with unshed tears. He knew it was from happiness or else there wouldn't be a smile on her lovely face. "I didn't say it before, but you look lovely tonight. I know you sometimes think I don't notice you as a woman but Sara, I do. I always have and sometimes that's why I may have seemed closed off. After that night we shared in San Francisco, I puzzled over the thought that maybe you had regrets because you never mentioned it. Then, with you here, I thought, no, I hoped that you were actually just as afraid as I was to begin something." He stared into her eyes as he spoke and then watched with a grin as she bit her lower lip to keep from interrupting him. He smiled. "I guess what I am trying to say is, thank you. Thank you for telling me about Laredo, for allowing me to be a part of her life and also for pulling me into yours."

For a moment there, the hostess thought she was going to watch a proposal happen, but alas no, it wasn't to be. _But maybe, I will, sometime soon._ She motioned for the waitress to move forward at that point to place the bruschettas on the table with the balsamic oil. Grissom and Sara withdrew their hands when they saw the waitress approach. She told them the food would arrive shortly and then left them again.

Sara's head was spinning. She had never heard anything so lovely and she wasn't quite sure how to respond. She wanted to say something, something to give him a clue that she felt the same but couldn't seem to find the words that wouldn't sound corny. "Gil, I," She breathed deeply and looked down at her lap trying desperately to form some kind of words. "I really don't know what to say. You've taken my breath away. I have never regretted that night. I never once thought of not having or keeping Laredo. When I found out I was pregnant, I was ecstatic for the fact that I had a piece of you with me, always, whether you would want her or not. I never had any doubt in my mind that she was yours, because from the first day I met you, there wasn't anyone else. I moved to Las Vegas to be near you in whatever form it came in, whether just as friends or if we became more. My dreams were never of our first date or whether or not you would finally see me as a woman. But they always showed me how much I wanted you in Laredo's life. It means more to me than you'll ever know that you accepted her without any reservations and now it makes me wonder how I could ever have kept it from you. I thought I knew you well, but you have shown me over this past week how much I have to learn. And Gil, I really do want to learn."

Their hands met again across the table and the candle light on the table flickered as they moved closer to have their lips meet in a kiss full of love and joy. They pulled apart and sat there as they took in the other's words that were spoken. Their conversation remained in that same tone. And they talked of their wants, desires and other aspects of their lives they needed and wanted to share. The food arrived and the conversation turned to their daughter and friends. Ideas were shared and a meeting of minds was made as they continued on until Grissom realized it was time for them to leave. The next part of this planned evening was yet to take place. They left after thanking the waitress and hostess. Hand in hand again they walked to the car with Grissom helping her in and shutting the door. They drove off further into the outskirts of Vegas.

Sara again wondered where they were going and asked him. Grissom held her hand and then lifted it to his lips and pressed them to her fingers. "I want to show you something." His eyes danced with the pleasure of finally being able to fulfill the next portion of his dream. They turned onto a dirt road that wound its way upward and disappeared into a thick wooded area. He finally stopped the car when he heard her sharp intake of breath. She turned to him and smiled as she leaned in toward him. She reached her hand around his neck and pulled him to her, kissing him deeply. They pulled apart and stepped out of the car. Walking to the front, they met in the middle and stared out over the city of Las Vegas, with all its bright lights blinking at them. They were able to just make out the Belaggio's fountains and watched them as they seamlessly performed their show.

He wrapped his arm around her back and let his hand slip down to her hip. She did likewise as they both stared at the sights before them. The air was warm and although they could see the lights of the city, they were still able to watch the twinkling lights of the stars. Sara had a quick thought and left Grissom abruptly to open the trunk of the car. She returned with a smile on her face and a blanket in her hand. He smiled too and helped her lay it out on the ground. They sat down and curled into the warmth of the other. Finally able to relax, he lay down beside her, supported by his elbow. She leaned back against him, one arm behind his back. He looked up into her face and then let himself reach upward to finger the curls in her hair. The happiness she felt was evident on her face and he vowed never to make her unhappy again.

She leaned down and brushed her lips against his then soon found herself lying next to him. He pressed his body against her and pulled her closer. They remained like that for a long while, kissing and touching each other without the lustfulness of sexual tension. Just happy to be together, knowing they would have other times. They remained curled together until almost falling asleep. Realizing how close he was to falling asleep, Grissom pulled away from her slowly and helped her stand, then he gathered the blanket and made their way back home and to their daughter. Sara fiddled with her hair as she felt some of the curls had fallen from the pins that had come loose. For some odd reason, she was worried about Catherine seeing her in a disheveled state. _I don't want Catherine thinking we'd been up to something._

They pulled up to the house and saw the flickering light through the front window of the television. When they walked in, they were surprised to find the living room empty. They walked down the hallway and soon found out why.

All curled up on Laredo's tiny bed, were Catherine and their baby girl. Laredo was sound asleep with her thumb in her mouth and Catherine held her tucked against her chest. They tiptoed their way back out and decided to let Catherine remain where she was.

Sara went to Grissom's bedroom while he walked down and shut the television off. When he arrived back to his room, Sara was taking the pins out of her hair. He walked up behind her and stopped her motions. She let her hands fall to her sides and allowed Grissom to gently continue pulling the pins out. He then made sure there were no more pins by running his fingers through her silky hair and then slowly began massaging her scalp. Sara leaned back against his chest, fully relaxed and let escape a small sigh from her lips and closed her eyes. _This is heaven._ He then held her close until finally he spoke, "Sara, let's go to bed." She nodded as he nudged her forward and began to unzip her dress. He turned around to let her finish changing then he did likewise. After climbing into bed, they snuggled closely and soon fell into a blissful sleep.


	20. Chapter 20

The next morning brought a surprise for Catherine. She tried to stretch but quickly realized that she couldn't because of the pressure of weight against her and on her arm. She opened her eyes to see a bunch of brown curls. A smile lit her face until she felt Laredo's head move and her body twisted around to face Catherine. "Well, Good Morning, Munchkin."

Laredo smiled then sat up and climbed off the bed. She quickly walked out of the bedroom and was followed by a curious Catherine. She quietly walked into the bathroom and went potty with Aunt Catrin's help then instead of going out into the kitchen she walked back to the bedrooms and went into Daddy's room. Catherine followed and saw Sara and Grissom curled together, sleeping peacefully. She quickly stopped Laredo from climbing up on the bed and pulled her out of the room. She whispered, "What do you say about making breakfast with me?" Laredo nodded and put her thumb in her mouth as she grabbed Aunt Catrin's hand and pulled her toward the kitchen.

Grissom and Sara both woke together when they heard the television come on in the living room with a loud rush of sound. They jumped out of bed and walked down the hallway to see Catherine standing behind Laredo, remote in hand and trying to turn the volume down. Catherine looked up to see them standing at the end of the hallway. "Sorry, guys, Laredo decided to watch a video."

Laredo stood there with thumb in mouth as a huge grin appeared on her face. She ran to her Daddy as he leaned down to pick her up. "Good Morning, Cricket. You didn't climb into bed this morning."

Laredo shook her head. "No Daddy, Aunt Catrin wanted me to help make breakfast." She turned back to Aunt Catrin and smiled.

"I didn't want her to wake you two so I pulled her out. Sorry." Catherine looked a little sheepish because she let them know she had seen them sleeping together. Sara and Grissom shared a look as if they had the same thought. "Umm, breakfast is ready though if you're hungry." She went to get the food on the table as Grissom went to change into something more decent. Sara had on a tank top and pajama pants and didn't need to change so she placed Laredo in her seat then went to help Catherine with the food.

"So, did you sleep well?" Catherine asked in a quiet but teasing tone.

Sara glanced up at her with a smile then placed a hand on Catherine's shoulder. "Yes I did and no, we didn't. We both aren't prepared for another one of her yet." She nodded toward Laredo as she talked then turned back to Catherine with a serious look. "Catherine, Grissom and I have grown really close over the past week but there is a lot of stuff we still need to work out and things to learn about the other. I don't think it will be all fun and games or go as smoothly as it has this past week."

"Sara, it'll work. You two will find a way and make it work. And I am glad you two are taking it slow. You both have trouble opening up to others including with each other, but you'll find that when you want it so much you'll do what it takes." Catherine smiled then they both turned to see Grissom enter with an added bounce to his step as he leaned down to kiss his daughter. Sara and Catherine smiled at each other then joined Grissom and Laredo at the table.

The End


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